Sapphire Night Eye
by Sangheili-riser
Summary: She was no one to the people, just another face in the crowd, a shadow on the wall. Picking pockets and breaking and entering her resume. She wasn't important, but the day in Helgen came back to haunt her, and Ty'ani must answer the call, whether she likes it or not. Rated M just in case.
1. Prologue

Memories are a strange and alien thing. They are within every life form, whether sapient or not. They stretch far and wide for a single persons lifespan. Most speak fondly of their memories, while others prefer to keep them locked away. Good memories are sometimes forgotten, and bad memories are usually remembered; no matter how hard one might try.

Her first memory was of flame. Of a young child barely out of infancy, watching the fire dance across her family's lifeless bodies, helpless to stop the destructive element. Her happiness destroyed along with her chance of a normal life.

Ever since, her memories were filled with hardship and abuse. Of a tiny girl who was forced to steal to survive. No one would hire the little girl who wasn't strong enough to even lift a crate. The child had to learn to fend and provide for herself. All throughout her childhood, she stole, learning archery and parkour by herself, not once had anyone stopped to help her.

Her memories of her thirteenth year was one of the worst. Her first kill. Starting when she made the mistake of pickpocketing an off-duty guard. She was caught, and a scuffle ensued. She panicked when fingers wrapped around her throat, when claws broke the skin of her nose. Her sight darkened. When she awoke, she was on her hands and knees, and he laying before her, his throat ripped open. Horror filled her when she realized her claws were covered in blood. She was forced to run from her home, as the man she killed was a son of a high standing noble family; and they demanded blood. She fled to Cyrodiil that day, never to see her homeland again.

The years went by, she grew into an athletic teen, her skills with a bow increased. As did her thieving skills. Once again, she was never hired. Plying her old trade was the only way she could survive.

The memories of her eighteenth year is what changed her life forever. The whole of Cyrodiil was aware of her exploits, and thus she had to flee once more. She travelled north to Skyrim, straight into an ambush. She never knew of the war, of the Nords of Skyrim rebelling against the Empire. Being mistaken as an ally of these Nords, which seemed implausible due to her race, she was captured as well. She was bound with the Nords, placed on a carriage, arriving in Helgen two days later.

But Helgen was destroyed by something that was considered a legend. Something she never knew existed. A dragon. She escaped with the help of Ralof, a Stormcloak, whom was captured with her. After spending the night at his sister's house in Riverwood, she disappeared.

**000110110111**

_Yeah, I know this is really short, but most people make their prologues short and to the point. Besides, I didn't want to dedicated half the story to my character's background. I wanted to get straight to the action. But don't worry, there will be mentions of her background._

_And just who is the mysterious person mentioned here? Find out in the next chapter._

_R&R please._


	2. Before the Storm

**4E 201  
14th of Sun's Dusk**

The weather in Skyrim was at it's harshest now that winter had reached the land. Snow fell heavily, especially in the far north, and the winds chilled even the brawniest of men. Roaming the land was a number of creatures: wolves, bears, giants, sabre cats and trolls to name a few, and all of them were dangerous. While the cities that dotted the land were walled and safe, the plains were wild and untamed, but was still distinctively beautiful.

The majestic snow-capped mountain peaks look over the entirety of the land, visible even in the greatest of distances. The most noticeable was the Throat of the World, Skyrim's tallest mountain. However the whole of Skyrim wasn't covered entirely with snow. Whiterun's rolling plains and rippling streams ran throughout the land, and the rocky cliffs and crevices of the Reach in Skyrim's west are also a sight to behold. Temperate forest lines of Falkreath in Skyrim's southern border, where green pines reach up high into the sky, small specks of white frost occasionally hanging onto their branches. Deer frolic and graze the grass, while birds perch on the trees and chirp.

This was more evident in Skyrim's south-eastern corner, the Rift. Colour could be seen as far as the eye could see, the trees seemingly being kept in constant autumn, giving it a more delicate look which contrasted against the rest of Skyrim. The border was also rimmed with mountain peaks, seemingly separating it from the rest of the land.

In the far south-east, the Rift's main city, Riften, glowed under the soft golden light of the morning sun. Early risers walked the street, which was littered with coloured leaves, shopping around the market place or wondering aimlessly. Guards stood ram-rod straight at their posts, eyes glaring around the area on the look out for trouble. Chanting could also be heard in the town's resident temple of Mara, the morning prayers to the Goddess of Love already under way.

All in all, Riften seemed peaceful on the surface. But like everything else, the beauty and peace hid the ugliness. The city did have a dark secret after all, down in the lower reaches of the under-city. The sewer system known as the Ratway, home of a tavern called the Ragged Flagon, and Riften's Thieves Guild.

While the tavern resided in the wetness of the Ratway, the Ragged Flagon was quite busy. Four merchants worked at their stalls on the outskirts, while patrons to the guild gathered in the taverns break room. One such person being the Guild's main source of contacts, in the form of one Delvin Mallory. The bold Breton thief sat at his usual table, drinking a tankard of Black-Briar mead, seemingly lost in thought.

He was snapped from his thoughts by the Flagon's bouncer, Dirge. The brute of a Nord stood before Delvin with his arms crossed as he addressed him. "Hey Delvin, got someone here who wants to see you." he jerked his thumb behind himself. Following where Dirge gestured to, Delvin immediately spotted the person in question.

A male Argonian was what met his eyes. He had dark scales with feathers and two long horns adorning his head, the feathers themselves the colour of dried blood. His glowing pale eyes contrasted against his scales, his left eye completely white due to the three large scars that ran horizontally through it. He was quite tall and athletic with a reasonable muscle mass. The most eye catching thing about this Argonian was his armour. Delvin recognised it as the red and black armour of the Dark Brotherhood. An ebony sword also sat on his left hip, with an ebony dagger sheathed just behind it.

The Argonian smiled as he stepped up to the table, helping himself to the vacated chair next to Delvin. "A pleasure to see you again Delvin." he said pleasantly in a deep voice, shaking the Breton's hand.

Smiling back, Delvin replied. "'ello again, Okan-Ru. What can ole Delvin do fer you today?"

Leaning back in his chair, Okan-Ru folded his hands on his stomach and rested his right ankle on his left thigh. "As much as I wish this was just a social call," he began nonchalantly. "I'm here on business. Astrid's on the look out for potential recruits, and she wants you to put out some feelers for her."

To say Delvin was less then surprised by this request was a huge understatement. "You lot not doin' so well hey?"

"You could say that." Okan-Ru replied, before brandishing a hefty coin purse. "And not to worry, I've already got the coin for any expenses you may need. Should be more then enough for your troubles." he dropped the purse on the table. After a moment Delvin opened the purse, allowing the coins to spill out over the table. Even though his eyes glinted with glee, he kept a professional personage about him as he turned his gaze back the the Argonian assassin.

"While I'm more then 'appy to 'elp you out, you still need to go o'er the details wiv our Guild Master. She'll set you up right."

Okan-Ru rose a brow at that. "She? Last time I checked, Mercer was in charge here. Something happen?"

A scowl crossed Delvin's face then. "Yeah, you could say that." shaking his head, he continued. "Anyway, 'nuff about that, it's all in the past now." he turned to one of the young men by the bar, calling him over. Telling him to go get the Guild Master, Delvin turned back to Okan-Ru as the young footpad jogged toward the back room.

"So how's ever'thing been for you lot then? Astrid still doin' well?"

Okan-Ru nodded. "Not to worry Delvin, everything is how it was since you left, nothing's changed. Still scrounging for contracts, recruits dropping like flies." his voice dropping as sarcasam filtered through. "Fairly embarrassing in all honesty. Never would have allowed this to happen if I was still in charge."

Delvin hummed, nodding his head in sympathy. "Sorry to 'ear that. But don't worry, I'm sure things'll pick up again."

"I do hope your right." the Argonian replied, just as the young footpad returned. Following behind him was a tiny Khajiit girl, a small smile stretched across her furry face.

She was quite young, the healthy glow of youth evident in her fur, which was as white as the snow that fell in this land. Black patches were present along her cheeks, around her eyes and below her pinkish nose. Marring her nose were three scars that looked like claw marks. Black stripes gracefully curved around her brow, eyes and neck. She had large, crystal blue eyes and a short, thin body. She was barely taller then a child. Her glossy black hair was tightly tied back in a half pony-tail, the locks reaching her shoulder-blades.

Her armour was the black Thieves Guild armour. Strapped to her left thigh was a single ebony dagger and ebony arrows sat in their quiver on her back with an ornate black bow over them. The bow of the Nightingales.

As she nodded at Delvin and took the seat across from him, Okan-Ru suddenly felt his insides twist. A flare of recognition and uncertainty flow through his body. She looked familiar to him, yet at the same time he knew she wasn't the person he first believed her to be. The face was the same, yet her hair and body was different.

His obvious stare didn't pass by the Khajiit girl as she settled into her sat. Shifting uncomfortably under his scrutiny, she frowned. "Why do you stare at me like that?" she asked in a heavily accented but soft and sweet voice. Highly unusual for a female Khajiit.

Okan-Ru blinked, refraining himself from continuing to stare. "I'm sorry, I..." he answered quickly, clearing his throat before facing her once more to address her properly. "So you are the new Guild Master?"

Folding her hands on the table, she gazed straight into Okan-Ru's eyes. "I am." she replied without hesitation, before narrowing her crystal eyes. "And if I can predict your next question; no you don't need to know how I gained the position. All you need to know, is that I am willing to do business with you. If you have a problem with that, then feel free to walk away."

Okan-Ru almost laughed. She most definitely knew what she was doing. Just like the certain someone he once knew. Shaking out of his melancholic thoughts, he placed his arms on the table, leaning on them as he regarded her. "Well, before we go anywhere, it would be quite rude of me not to refer to you by name. So maybe an introduction is in order. Okan-Ru at your service." he bowed his head before gazing back up at her. "And you are...?"

"Ty'ani." she replied simply.

Okan-Ru nodded once, leaning back into his chair. "Alright then, Ty'ani," he began. "As you've no doubt heard, I'm here on behalf of the Dark Brotherhood. I have asked Delvin here if it would be possible to send out feelers to find more potential recruits for us. He told me all I needed was confirmation from you."

Ty'ani leant her elbows on the table, folding her hands together to allow her chin to rest on them. After a moment of silence, she nodded. "We'll see what we can do. Delvin," she continued, turning now to the man in question. "We do still have the necessary men for this job, yes?"

"Yep," the Breton replied. "I can call 'em up whene'er you want, and they can be down 'ere quick as ya like."

The Khajiit girl nodded as she rose from her seat. "Alright then. If you will just follow me Okan-Ru, and we can discuss where you want to post these men."

**000110110111**

The discussion had taken longer then Ty'ani thought it would. After Okan-Ru had gone, Ty'ani still sat in the office, rubbing her tired eyes. She was quite frustrated. While she did feel honoured that the guild trusted her enough to lead them, it still felt as though she is constantly bashing her head against the wall. On top of that, she didn't get enough sleep the other night. Again.

It was the same every other night, since she escaped from Helgen. Her mind would wonder to that same terrifying image, before waking up screaming and drenched in sweat. It was always the same dream as well. She sighed as she buried her face in her hands.

Ty'ani was suddenly snapped from her thoughts by the sound of someone clearing their throat. She snapped upright, turning her gaze to the entrance. Brynjolf stood in the doorway, a concerned look on his face. Ty'ani blinked, "Oh Brynjolf, sorry I didn't see you there."

The red head Nord crossed his arms as his brow creased slightly in a frown. "Are you alright lass?" he asked. "You've been in here for the past hour."

"Have I?" Ty'ani replied, quite perplexed. "I didn't notice."

Brynjolf shook his head. "Aye, and you looked as though your world just ended then. You are okay, aren't you?"

Ty'ani quickly nodded. "Yes, I'm fine." she lied. "Everything's fine."

He just shrugged as he stepped closer to her. "Well, if your sure." Brynjolf then placed a hand on her small shoulder. "In any case, I came to bring you to the Flagon. Everyone's been waiting for you."

"What do you mean?"

Brynjolf shook his head in amusement at Ty'ani's question. "Why, to celebrate your birthday of course. Don't tell me you've forgotten your own birthday lass." Ty'ani's face heated up in embarrassment. By the Divines, she was so caught up in her problems the she had forgotten about her own birthday.

Brynjolf gripped her upper arm, gently pulling her out of her seat and began leading her into the tavern. "Come on lass, the party's already started. Wouldn't want you to miss it."

Once in the tavern, Ty'ani was immediately greeted with the guild members standing and sitting around, each with a tankard of ale or mead. Upon seeing her, the whole lot of them let out a loud cheer as Ty'ani melded in with the crowd of celebrating thieves. She smiled as she received pats on the back and 'happy birthday's from the guild members. As a tankard of Black-Briar mead was shoved into her hands by Vipir, Ty'ani spotted someone among the crowd who she was very surprised to see.

"Karliah!" she exclaimed happily as she made her way through the crowd, giving her friend and fellow Nightingale a firm hug. Karliah returned the hug, giving the shorter woman a squeeze as she did so. "Gods, it is so good to see you."

The Dunmer gave a laugh at that. "You didn't think that I would miss your birthday would you?" Ty'ani grinned at that.

The party was in full swing as Ty'ani and Karliah continued to converse, moving to the outskirts to escape the crowd. Delvin and Brynjolf joined the conversation after a while, during which they got a good laugh as Dirge and Maul got up on the bar, singing an off-key version of 'Ragnar the Red' with all present thieves egging them on. Ty'ani rubbed her forehead in embarrassment as she giggled at the display.

She received a few useful gifts from the others, most of which would help on her adventures. Others just gave her a few sweet rolls, which she munched on happily. Ty'ani adored sweet rolls, almost unhealthily so. But it was her birthday, so she had the privilege to gulp down as many as she wanted.

As the day rolled on into the evening, the other thieves still drinking, singing, most were passed out and the rest conversing, Ty'ani sat on the platform were Tonilia normally sat, finishing the last of another sweet roll. Just in time too, as Brynjolf walked up to her table.

"Hey Ty'ani." he greeted simply.

"Hey Bryn. What's up?"

"Me, Delvin and Vex's got a surprise for you. A gift from us." he patted her on the shoulder, inclining his head in the direction of the fake cupboard. "Follow me."

He lead Ty'ani back through the cupboard to the Cistern, before taking her to the training room. Delvin stood at the entrance with Vex. Brynjolf left her side to stand with the other two, turning to face her. Ty'ani was practically bouncing in anticipation. Whatever the gift was, it was certainly a special one if Brynjolf were to tear her away from the festivities.

"I really 'ope you like it Ty'ani." Delvin said at last. "The blacksmif' spent 'ours on it all this week."

That made Ty'ani start. "Wait. You mean to tell me that..." She paused mid-sentence when Brynjolf, Vex and Delvin moved from the entranceway. Inside the training room stood a mannequin standing at exactly her height. Sitting on the mannequin was a set of armour.

It had a thick black leather bodice with a kite shaped crest sitting on the chest area. A silver emblem of Thieves Guild stood proudly against the black, and in the circle of the emblem was the symbol of the Nightingales. An off-white shirt sat comfortably under the bodice. There was also black leggings and arm-warmers that ended in fingerless gloves, with the forearms covered by silver coloured metal plates attached to leather gauntlets. Finishing off the piece was a pair of small shoulder-guards made from the same metal, black leather boots with metal toe-caps and a long black cape with a hood.

Ty'ani stared at the armour in astonishment and excitement. She let out a small childish squeal as she bounded into the room. "Oh my Gods! He actually finished it! I thought he said he wasn't going to finish it for weeks!"

Brynjolf laughed at her childish glee. "Well, we asked him to keep it a surprise. We knew how excited you were for this thing."

Ty'ani circled the mannequin, her wide crystal eyes taking in every detail. She let out a hum as she studied the metal plates. "The plates don't really look like ebony. Couldn't you get your hands on it?"

"Well, that's the thing." exclaimed Vex, whom had stayed quiet up until this point. "We had a mountain load of ebony. But Vanryth said that it was impossible to make it lighter. So we came up with another solution. Those plates are made from Mithril."

Ty'ani's eyes widened in surprise at the news. "But I thought that all the Mithril mines had dried up."

"Well, they did" Vex continued. "But you see, the East Empire Trading Company actually had a whole crate full of Mithril ore at the warehouse in Solitude. They weren't really doing anything with it, so we _relieved_ them of the burden."

Ty'ani laughed, looking back at the armour. "Oh, this is just wonderful. Thank you guys."

"Ah, no worries." Delvin replied. "You deserve it."

Brynjolf grabbed Vex and Delvin's shoulders, beginning to lead them out. "Come on you two, lets leave her to try it on."

The moment they left, Ty'ani didn't waste any time. She removed her Thieves Guild cuirass, gloves and boots and began replacing them with the new armour.

Once it was on, she stretched out her limbs, bending down and lifting her legs above her head in an impressive display of flexibility. The armour was so light and airy, she was able to move freely without any resistance. Immediately, she fell in love with this armour; it fit her perfectly.

She walked out the training room carrying her old armour. The others weren't in the Cistern, so she folded the Guild armour and placed it in the chest next to her bed before moving for the Flagon. The few thieves that were still conscious glanced up when she entered. They all gave approving sounds to her new armour. Brynjolf walked up to her, nodding as he looked her up and down. "Very nice lass." he commented. "Suits you really well."

Ty'ani smiled at that, placing a hand on her hip, giving a coy twirl to the ogling men. She laughed as a couple jokingly wolf-whistled.

**000110110111**

She ran, fire licking at her heels as she tore her way through the crumbling street. Ears flattened against her head in a vain attempt to block out the screams. Her legs began to burn as her chest tightened with fear. Fear that only increased ten-fold, as a deafening roar sounded from behind her.

Taking in panicking breaths, Ty'ani pushed herself to run faster. Her salvation was just ahead, in the form of the Helgen Keep. She had to keep going, she couldn't let the monster catch her. But with every step she took, the Keep just seemed to be getting further away. It was a hopeless effort.

Wing beats sounded from behind her and without thinking, she whipped around. It was an action that cost her. Catching a brief glimpse of dark scales and blood red eyes, Ty'ani screamed as the giant scaled beast landed above her. She lost her balance, falling heavily onto her back, her head smacking on the stone floor.

Blinded for about half a second from the pain, Ty'ani squeezed her eyes shut, her fear reaching it's crescendo. The dragon shifted above her, feeling it's fiery gaze bore through her. Ty'ani's entire body shivered as it's foul breath washed over her. She whimpering, not daring to open her eyes, afraid of seeing her death come to pass. She pressed herself closer to the ground as the maw of the dragon got ever closer.

Amazingly though, it didn't kill her. It spoke instead, which surprised her enough to finally open her eyes.

"_Meyz, dovahkiin._" it growled, the bass of it's voice rattling Ty'ani's bones."_Liivrah hin mulaag. Hio, ahrk pah daar lein fen kos daanik._"

Tears of fear fell in rivulets down her cheeks as she took in the sight of the dragon. The head was adorned in wicked horns and razor sharp teeth were presented through an evil grin. Blood red eyes burned into hers, hunger and malice evident in the glowing orbs. The scales as black as the darkest night. It was the vision of death itself.

Ty'ani continued to whimper as the dragon inched even closer. She snapped her eyes closed again, trying to scramble away from under it. Her ears were filled with the cruel laughter as she doubled her efforts. All of a sudden, she began falling.

What was happening? Did the dragon release her? Had it taken to the air when she didn't realize, and let her go on purpose so that she'd fall to her death? Her skin began to feel unusually hot. Opening her eyes wide, her vision was filled with dancing fire. Glimpses of a town were present from behind the destructive element. It wasn't Helgen though. She caught a glimpse of a saw mill surrounded by the remnants of a river. By the Gods, this was Riverwood.

Her ears were full of the screams of the damned as the townsfolk were burnt alive. The gut-wrenching smell of burning flesh assaulted her nostrils, as the heat of the flame lapped over her body. Still she continued to fall, with no end to break her decent.

Then before her eyes, emerging from the flames were two figures, reaching out to her. Their flesh was being liquefied as the fire danced across their forms. Ty'ani's eyes widened when she realized that these people were Hod and Gerdur. Terror was etched on their faces as they tried to reach for her, their cries for her to help them joining the townspeople's. Ty'ani was so frightened, that she curled up into herself, but she could not tear her eyes away from the mirage before her.

An ear splitting roar sounded out of nowhere, as the dragon cut through the flames. It opened it's wings wide like a demon of Oblivion, those red eyes staring at her in hunger. It then turned it's gaze to the two Nords. A dark smile crossed it's face before folding it's wings, diving toward them at an alarming rate. The both of them were ripped apart before Ty'ani could even react. Horror spread through her like poison as the dragon let out a booming laugh.

Tears continuing to fall from her eyes, she squeezed them shut and slamming her hands over her ears, desperate to rid herself of this horrible vision. But it was all in vain.

At last she found her voice, and let out a deafening scream.

Finally she hit the ground; but there was no pain. Did she die on impact? '_By the twin moons, please tell me I'm not dead._' She opened her eyes.

Greeting her sight was the underside of a wooden table. She snapped to an upright position, gazing around. She was in the Ragged Flagon. She knelt on the wooden floor, the slight pain that had now flared up along her right side indicated that she had fallen out of the chair.

Ty'ani placed a hand on her forehead, feeling her fur was slick with cold sweat, as with the rest of her body. Her breathing still irregular. She sucked in a breath through her nose, and let it out in a deep sigh of relief. '_Gods, another nightmare._'

Ty'ani rubbed the back of her neck to sooth the stiff muscles there. She must of fallen asleep here after all the mead she drank finally went to her head. She was even still wearing her new armour. Everyone else must have been too drunk as well, since no one else was in the Flagon. Letting out a sigh, Ty'ani heaved herself to her feet before shuffling toward the fake cupboard.

Once in the Cistern, Ty'ani immediately removed her armour, placing it in a neat pile on the end table next to her bed. Grabbing the knapsack that sat at the base of her bed, Ty'ani reached in and pulled out a long cotton shirt. Throwing it on, she flopped on her bed, pulling her hair-band out as she did so, allowing her long hair to fly free.

Pulling the covers over herself, Ty'ani rolled onto her side, tucking the thick blanket under her chin. Closing her eyes she stayed in that position for a few minutes, before her traitorous eyes reopened, denying her sleep. She sighed. Even though her eyes felt heavy, sleep just wouldn't come to her. Rolling onto her back, she stared up at the ceiling of the Cistern, allowing her mind to wonder.

Her thoughts drifted to her recent nightmare. Her dreams had been haunted by that dragon since she escaped Helgen. It was always the same; she was running from the dragon before she began falling and helplessly watching the town burn. For some reason, tonight had been different. Why did it show Riverwood being destroyed while she was falling?

While Ty'ani didn't really believe that her dreams meant anything, she began to wonder. She knew what she saw that day three months ago was real, and she had even visited the husk of a town that was Helgen to prove it. But where was the dragon? Ty'ani had been practically all over Skyrim, and there was no sign of it anywhere. It nagged her. A big dragon like that doesn't just disappear, and it certainly can't blend into a crowd. What was it doing? Was it amassing its numbers so it can begin a full scale invasion? Or was it preparing to attack Riverwood like she fears.

Ty'ani bit her lip, beginning to worry it between her teeth. If it was planning to attack Riverwood, then she needed to make sure that the people would be safe. With that in mind, Ty'ani made the decision to travel to Riverwood tomorrow and see Gerdur again. She hadn't seen the Nord woman since she and Ralof escaped Helgen, and she had definitely hadn't contacted her. No doubt Gerdur would be surprised to see her again.

Closing her eyes, decision made, Ty'ani relaxed and tried to get her much needed sleep.

**000110110111**

The last thirteen days of travel was one of the most frustrating for Ty'ani. How much she really wished that Skyrim was much smaller, since her impatience to reach Riverwood ran deep. At least the Guild was in good hands with Brynjolf, Vex and Delvin looking after things.

It was mid-day and raining when she finally reached Riverwood, the small village that sat near the White River, and was sheltered from the harsh winds by the steep mountainside of the Throat of the World. Ty'ani shivered, pulling her hood further down her head as the rain picked up. She adjusted her heavy pack, filled with rations, potions, clothes and camping equipment, so she could wrap her cloak around herself. She walked under the archway that led into the village proper.

She gained a couple of stares from the folk around her, but Ty'ani paid no mind to it. After all, she had gotten used to the stares she receives when she entered any of the cities in the province, since it was highly unheard of for a Khajiit to be inside city walls around a land that hated her kind. Turning the corner at the Riverwood Trader and the Sleeping Giant Inn, Ty'ani marched toward the only house at the edge of the village. As she reached the front door, she gave it a firm knock and waited, pulling her cloak further around her small body. After a few seconds, the door opened with a creak, revealing a blonde Nord woman. She wore a green dress with a white under-shirt, and a pair of thick leather gloves. She frowned as Ty'ani smiled at her.

"Yes, may I help you Khajiit?" she asked kindly. Ty'ani almost laughed, shaking her head.

"Oh I should have known you wouldn't recognise me." Ty'ani said, pulling her hood from her head. "Gerdur, it's me, Ty'ani."

"Ty'ani?" Gerdur asked, momentarily perplexed. Before long, her eyes brightened in realization. "Oh, Ty'ani! By Talos, I'm so sorry, I didn't recognise you. Come on in, get yourself out of the rain."

Stepping inside, Ty'ani shook her head, small droplet of water flying from her locks of hair as she dropped her pack on the floor by the door. After closing the door, Gerdur smiled at the Khajiit girl as she stepped further in the house. "Go ahead and make yourself at home, and I'll get you something to eat."

After balancing her bow and quiver of arrows against the wall by her pack, and pooling her wet cloak over them, Ty'ani moved to a chair near the fire, sitting down with a tired sigh. She rubbed her eyes as she relaxed. After a moment of allowing her muscles to sooth, Ty'ani tucked her feet under the chair and sat up straight. Just in time as Gerdur returned, baring a steaming bowl of venison stew. Accepting the bowl, Ty'ani dug in as Gerdur sat across from her.

"So, Ty'ani," Gerdur began after a moment. "Where did you go those months ago? You disappeared without a trace when you and Ralof came here after Helgen."

Swallowing down a small chunk of venison, Ty'ani lowered the bowl onto her lap. "I'm sorry I just vanished on you like that Gerdur. It's just, at the time I wasn't used to anyone being so kind to me. I thought I was being a burden on you, that's why I left."

"Oh, you weren't a burden at all. I was more then happy to allow you to stay as long as you needed." Gerdur replied, gripping the girl's free hand between her own gloved ones. "But you look as though you've done well for yourself non-the-less." Releasing Ty'ani's hand so she could continue eating, Gerdur folded her hands on her lap as she continued. "But it is odd that you turn up out of the blue all of a sudden. Is everything okay?"

Silence was her only answer for a moment as Ty'ani studied the contents of her bowl. She sighed before replying. "Do you remember the reason why we escaped from Helgen, Gerdur?"

"Of course, the dragon."

"Yes. It disappeared after it destroyed the town, but I have a feeling that it wasn't a one time thing. Somehow, I just know that dragon is still out there."

"But it has been three months Ty'ani," Gerdur argued. "No one has seen hide or tail of that dragon. People say that it is just the tellings of mad men. Some even believe it was just Ulfric's army that destroyed Helgen just so he could escape. How can you be sure it will just turn up now?"

Ty'ani closed her eyes as she turned her head away from Gerdur, facing the fire instead. "Honestly? I'm not sure. But I'm worried. I _know_ what I saw those months ago was real, and it can't have just disappeared. It has to be gaining strength or amassing it's numbers or something." Reopening her eyes, she returned her gaze back to Gerdur. "I'm just scared that Riverwood will be next. Nothing is protecting your village out here."

"Ty'ani, stop." Gerdur rose from her chair, gripping the Khajiit's small shoulders as she knelt in front of her. "I believe you, I really do. It has been a long time, and though nothing has happened so far, I'm just as worried. I'm afraid I can't do anything about it though. Take your concerns to the Jarl, and convince him to send troops here."

Ty'ani just let out a humourless laugh. "Your joking right? What makes you think the Jarl will want to speak to me?"

"Jarl Balgruuf cares about his people." Gerdur replied without hesitation. "When it concerns his citizens, he will listen. Plus, he has been pondering over the dragons from what I hear. You are a survivor of Helgen, so he will listen to you."

"But how will I gain an audience with him?" Ty'ani continued to ask. "The guards just won't let me walk in. Unless..."

Ty'ani leant back as her eyes glazed over in thought. In her time with the Thieves Guild, she had contacted powerful people in each of Skyrim's main cities. In Whiterun, there were two major family clans; the Grey-Manes and the Battle-Borns. The patriarch of clan Battle-Born was a contact of the Guild, so if she could pull a few strings, maybe she could get him to gain an audience with the Jarl for her. If not, she could always ask the patriarch of clan Grey-Mane. Since she helped them find their missing son, Ty'ani became good friends with the Grey-Manes, so they would no doubt help her.

Ty'ani nodded as she glanced back at Gerdur's expecting face. "I think I know what to do. I'll head for Whiterun soon."

That only caused Gerdur to tighten her grip on her shoulders. "No Ty'ani. Whiterun is at least a day and a half journey from here. It's far too late for you to get a good head start now. Stay for the night and then you can leave in the morning."

Ty'ani sighed, attempting to rise from her seat. "Gerdur, I can't waste time. I have to-"

"No, you don't have to." the Nord woman interrupted, pushing her back into the chair. "If you leave now, it will take even longer for you to get to Whiterun. Besides, I would feel terrible for letting you out in this weather. So please, just stay for one night, and you can go in the morning."

Ty'ani paused, thinking over what Gerdur just said. While she was itching to get going as soon as possible, she knew Gerdur was right. It would take even longer to reach Whiterun if she left now. Plus the fact, she was still exhausted, so maybe staying put would be the best solution for her. After making that conclusion, Ty'ani nodded. "Okay Gerdur. I'll stay for only one night, but I'm going to leave early tomorrow."

Gerdur smiled. "That's fine. As long as you get some rest. I'm going to hang your cloak over the fire, let it dry out. You just finish your stew." and with that, Gerdur rose from her knelt position, grabbing Ty'ani's soaked cloak to do as she promised.

**000110110111**

It was mid-day when Ty'ani finally strode down the road to Whiterun's entrance. The last two days had passed quickly for the young Kahjiit, her determination being the only thing that kept her moving. The only set backs she had was the few animals that attempted to attack her and having to camp for the night just off the road. Thankfully, no bandits ambushed her this time.

When she passed Honningbrew, now Black-Briar Meadery, Ty'ani's sharp hearing caught the sounds of conflict, shouts, commands and taunts. She briefly caught sight of a small object cutting through the air just above the road. Her eyes widened when she realised that it was an arrow. Running now, Ty'ani headed over the ridge that lead to the large field of Pelagia Farm.

Her eyes zeroed in on the battle going on in the centre of the farm. What met her eyes were a group of four people -all wearing heavy armour and carrying either great-swords, battle-axes and a bow in one of the women's case- fighting a giant.

As Ty'ani watched, the giant swung it's massive arm in a downward arch, swatting aside a man in steel armour with long shaggy black hair. When the giant's hand connected, it smacked straight into the man's chest, effectively swiping him off his feet. He flew a couple of paces before landing heavily on his back, utterly winded, his great-sword landing a few paces from him.

Just as the giant was about to pummel the man into the ground with it's enormous club, the two behind it swiped at it's legs with their weapons, and an arrow buried into it's back. Letting out a thundering groan, the giant pivoted around, slamming the club on the ground between the two warriors. Both of whom leapt out the way of the heavy weapon.

Ty'ani could see that this battle was much more intense then the four warriors could handle. Especially when she spotted the giant lift it's weapon again, aiming to bring it down on the woman at it's feet. Ty'ani started, making a snap decision. Time slowed down. As the hammer began to descend, Ty'ani grabbed both her bow and an arrow in record time, letting the ebony projectile loose. She grabbed another just as the first hit.

It wasn't a perfect aim, but the arrow did it's job. It embedded into the base of it's neck, causing it to yell out in pain and stumble in surprise as ice erupted from the wound and sparks danced along it's body. Curtsey of the enchantment of the Nightingale bow. The woman rolled out the way as the hammer thudded into the ground a foot away from her. She rose to her feet, her battle-axe at the ready as Ty'ani knocked her next arrow, jogging closer to the giant. She momentarily noticed the four warriors stare at her curiously and in astonishment before she let the next arrow loose.

It struck true, burying in the giant's left eye as it turned toward her. It cried out, covering the left side of it's face with a large hand. The two warriors at it's feet didn't wait around. Simultaneously, they brought their weapons behind them, and swung them at the giant's legs. The power behind the two blows was enough to bring the giant to it's knees, blood pouring from both wounds. Before it could react, the woman's battle-axe found home in it's chest, just below the collar-bone. The axe biting into the flesh for about an inch. As the giant's blood flowed, it's remaining eye finally glazed over before slumping onto it's side.

As the woman ripped her axe from the now dead giant, Ty'ani studied the four of them as she put away her bow. The two men had rugged features and black hair, the only difference being that one wore steel armour and had long hair, while the other wore a strange set of armour with furs and his hair reached to just above his shoulders. The both of them had steel great-swords.

The woman with the bow wore a set of armour that, quite frankly, Ty'ani thought wasn't really fit for battle, since it revealed far too much skin. She had a hunting bow with steel arrows and a steel short sword strapped to her belt, with a steel shield sitting under the quiver. She had long, free brown hair and her face was adorned in green war-paint.

The last woman was the most eye catching. She looked to be in her mid thirties, had long golden hair that reached below her shoulders with a single braid on the left side. She had fare skin with a very nasty set of scars running down her left cheek and right eyebrow. Her misty blue eyes were filled with experience and leadership, as was her stance, which was as straight as a pole. She wore a black set of heavy steel plate armour with silver trimming. It shined a midnight blue when the light hit it at the right angle. At the neckline and belt was a couple of etchings of a growling wolf. The weapon she was now placing on her back was a two handed, double edged ebony battleaxe, again with a growling wolf etched into the hilt. She had a muscled build and a height of about six foot three. All four of the warriors were Nords.

Stepping closer to them, Ty'ani barely noticed the short haired man beginning to help the other off the ground as the two women approached her. The both of them looked at her with impressed expressions.

"Not bad, that was some decent shooting." commented the brown haired woman. "It's good to see another woman who can handle herself. You'd make a decent Shield-Sister, I think."

Ty'ani tilted her head, one of her ears pressing against her skull in curiosity. "Shield-Sister?"

"Ah," said the blonde haired woman. "You must be new to Skyrim. You've ever heard of the Companions?"

"Yes, I have." Ty'ani replied. "I've actually been here for a couple of months. Just not long enough to hear everything I suppose."

"Understandable." the blonde simply said. "Non-the-less, you have an excellent aim. I would allow you to join us, if you so wish."

Ty'ani crossed her arms under her petite breasts, shrugging her shoulders, "I'm sorry, but I don't really see myself as the mercenary type. No offence."

"None taken." she nonchalantly said, waving a reassuring hand. "While you do have the necessary skills, it is not becoming of me to force you into something you don't want." as she finished speaking, the two men walked up behind her. She briefly glanced at the long haired one -smiling as he nodded in reassurance- as the short haired one placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Aela, Harbinger, the contract is done. Lets get what we can from the corpse and head back."

They both nodded, beginning to walk away. The blonde turned back with a smile. "Thank you for the save by the way, I owe you. Perhaps we will see each other again some day. Until then, may your battles bring you glory." As the four of them moved to the dead giant, Ty'ani turned away to return to the road, continuing to the city.

Bypassing the stables, Ty'ani walked under the outer wall's archway toward the main entrance. Taking a deep breath, Ty'ani braced herself. She always dreaded this part. As a Khajiit, she and the rest of her kind had been forbidden to enter any of the main cities in Skyrim, due to the famous stereotype of her people being thieves and skooma dealers. While the former for her was true, she still thought it unfair that they were shunned from society because of the few of them that fit the description. Steeling her nerves, Ty'ani marched up to the gate.

As predicted, the guards stopped her. "Halt." the one on her left commanded. "What do you think your doing Khajiit? You know the rules; no entering the city. Get out of here."

Refraining from growling, Ty'ani replied as politely as she could. "But I have business to attend to in the city, please let me through."

"Not going to happen." the same guard growled, crossing is arms. "The law is the law, and your not getting in."

Ty'ani frowned, feeling her anger bubble in her chest. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she argued. "Look, I've been allowed in the city before. I have important business that could affect the safety of the Hold, now _please_ let me through!"

"And I've already told you!" the guard yelled back. "That's not going to happen. Now get out of here, before we throw you out, cat."

Ty'ani bristled, her eyes glowing dangerously. "I. Am. Not. A. Cat." she growled through clenched teeth, becoming increasingly annoyed with the guards attitude. She clenched her fists, almost cutting through her gloves with her claws, tail twitching and ears folding back.

The guard shook his head, glancing at his comrade. "Oh really? You heard that Hroki? She says she not a cat."

"I heard." the other replied. "I'm not convinced. Look miss Not-a-cat, the law is clear. Now we're going to say this one last time. Either leave or-"

"Let her in." came a commanding voice from behind Ty'ani. Turning round, she spotted the four Companions. The blonde had a fierce look on her face with her arms crossed, the others looking unimpressed. Ty'ani couldn't even begin to guess how long they had been there, but judging from the impatient looks on most of their faces it had been a little while.

Upon seeing her, the guards straightened. "H-Harbinger." one of them stammered, addressing the blonde Nord. "With all respect, we can't let her in. She's a-"

"I know what she is guardsmen." she interrupted venomously. "But she has just as much a right to enter the city as we do. If she makes trouble, then it will be dealt with. Now, _let her in_."

This seemed to convince the guard as he nodded, turning to open the gate as his comrade returned to his post. Once the gate was open, he turned back to Ty'ani with a glare. "Alright, your free to go in. But we'll be keeping an eye on you. So no funny business Khajiit."

Ty'ani simply scowled at the man, before turning to glance at the woman behind her with a relieved smile. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." she replied kindly. "But I will stay true to my word. Just make sure to stay out of trouble." and with that, the four Companions marched through the gate. After a moment, Ty'ani followed.

**000110110111**

Ty'ani wondered the market with the morning shoppers, feeling annoyed.

It truly was a good thing that she was acquaintances with both the Grey-Manes and the Battle-Borns, since when she went to first ask Olfrid to help her, he had refused. Something about her helping the Grey-Manes or because it wasn't anything to do with the Guild or something like that, she had stopped listening when voices were raised. So she had asked Vignar Grey-Mane for help and he agreed to help her gain an audience with the Jarl, since they still owed her for finding and rescuing Thorald.

It took quite a long time, however. Exactly three days later, and Ty'ani was still waiting. The Khajiit girl leant against the wall that belonged to Belethor's General Goods, arms crossed, as she sighed. She was utterly bored. She tried to pass the time by helping some people who needed it. From helping the priests at the temple of Kynareth to delivering a sword to the steward from the blacksmith. She even helped a young boy get rid of a bully. Though she ran out of things to do all too soon.

She groaned, rubbing her forehead. She was beginning to get restless, now that she had nothing to do. Maybe she should go out of the city and hunt or something. Before she could think about pushing off the wall to do just that however, a woman jogged over to her. Ty'ani's brows rose when she recognised the woman to be Olfina Grey-Mane.

Olfina stopped before her. "Your Ty'ani right?" at her nod, the Nord girl continued. "I was sent by my uncle. He said to meet him at the shrine of Talos."

After saying a quick word of thanks to Olfina, Ty'ani eagerly set off. Once up in the Wind district, Ty'ani spotted the elder Grey-Mane straight away, standing beside the shrine to the Nordic God. He waved her over when he spotted her, and she jogged toward him. "Is it done then?" Ty'ani asked once she was next to him.

"Yes." he replied in his withered voice. "The Jarl has agreed to see you. He knows that you came from Helgen, like you specified, not much else. Prepare yourself for a lot of questions." when the small Khajiit nodded, he continued. "I cannot go in with you I'm afraid, so you'll have to do this alone."

"It's all I asked for and more." Ty'ani reassured. "Thank you Vignar."

He escorted her to the top of the winding stairs that lead to the Cloud District, thus the entrance of Dragonsreach. Once at the large wooden double doors, he opened one of them, allowing her to slip inside before closing it behind her.

The palace was just as enormous since the last time Ty'ani visited. At least this time she entered through the front door. Last time she had to sneak in through a window to complete an assignment given to her by Olfrid for the Thieves Guild. So now she could truly appreciate how large the place really was.

The palace had a high ceiling that stretched far over the balconies that framed the sides. Above the steps before her was a fireplace with two long dining tables that housed generous amounts of food on their surfaces on either side of it. Up another set of stairs was an ornate throne with a dragon skull hanging above it. It had been a matter of debate whether that skull was real or not, but there was no doubt in Ty'ani's mind after what she saw. The area was currently occupied by three people; one was a Breton man wearing fine clothes, another was a Dunmer woman in leather armour, and the final one was the Jarl himself. Balgruuf the Greater.

All of their attention was firmly planted on her as she reached the foot of the throne. Ty'ani shifted uncomfortably as she bowed her head in respect to the Jarl.

Balgruuf looked her up and down as she stood before him. He rested his elbow on the arm of his seat. "So," he began in a tone that held experience, "You are the one Vignar mentioned?"

Ty'ani shivered as she replied. "Yes, my lord. I am Ty'ani."

"So you were at Helgen? You saw this dragon with your own eyes?"

"I did. The very last time I saw it was at least three months ago. I have not seen it since. But I fear it may be gathering strength and allies. I am almost certain that this dragon will reappear, and we will have a full scale invasion on our hands." she rose her head, looking the Jarl in the eye. "I have requested an audience with you to ask you to send troops to Riverwood. I believe that the dragon is roosting in the mountains, if so, Riverwood is in terrible danger."

She paused, allowing this information to sink in. Balgruuf's eyes had widened in horror at the news. "By Ysmir, Irileth was right!" he then turned his head to glare at his steward. "What do you say now Proventus? Shall we continue to trust in the strength of our walls? Against a dragon?"

"My lord," the Dunmer next to the Jarl stepped forward. "It is wise to send troops to Riverwood at once. It is in the most immediate danger, if what this Khajiit says is true and that dragon is lurking in the mountains..." she was cut off by Proventus, who had a worried look in his eye.

"The Jarl of Falkreath will view that as a provocation!" he said in a matter-of-fact voice. "He'll assume we're preparing to join Ulfric's side and attack him! We should not..."

"Enough!" Jarl Balgruuf yelled, cutting off Proventus's argument. "I'll not stand idly by while a dragon burns my hold and slaughters my people! Irileth, send a detachment to Riverwood at once."

The Dunmer, now known as Irileth, bowed her head, touching her fist on her chest. "Yes my Jarl." and without another word, she descended the steps, heading to the entrance. Proventus also bowed his head to the Jarl, exclaiming he should return to his duties.

"That would be best." Balgruuf said. He returned his gaze to Ty'ani, who continued to patiently stand in front of him. He smiled at her. "Well done. You sought me out on your own initiative. You've done Whiterun a service, and I won't forget it. Here," he waved to one of his guards, who handed the Jarl a coin purse who in turn gave it over to Ty'ani. "Take this as a small token of my esteem." as she tied the purse strings around her belt, a thoughtful look crossed Balgruuf's face, glancing at her weapons and armour. "There is another thing you could do for me. Suitable for someone of your particular talents, perhaps. Come, lets go find Farengar, my court wizard. He's been looking into a matter related to these dragons and... rumours of dragons."

He rose from his seat and walked to one of the side rooms with Ty'ani close behind. She was extremely grateful that Balgruuf saw reason. Though she was slightly worried about what the Jarl wanted from her, she felt content, now that she knew her efforts hadn't been in vain.

**000110110111**

_Yep, I have complete redone this story to fit the changes that I thought of. For those who were enjoying it before, I'm sorry but you have to settle with this now *shot_

_Anyway, here is my main character, Ty'ani, (pronounced Tay-ah-nee), a young Khajiit thief. You can all probably guess what's going to happen to her, but still, for those who don't (as unlikely as that is) I'm not saying anything._

_I am following the main quest as well as mentioning certain other quests, but I'm putting my own spin on it. And I'll be introducing more OCs in the next chapter._

_R&R please :)_


	3. Bleak Falls Barrow

**4E 201  
29th of Sun's Dusk**

Currently, Ty'ani was still in Whiterun, sitting in the Bannered Mare as she thought over what she had just been assigned by Faerngar Secret-Fire. Due to her experience with dragons and his research on them, she was tasked with retrieving an artefact to help in his research. Something called a 'Dragonstone', which revealed the location of dragon burial sites. What this had to do with the return of the dragons, Ty'ani couldn't even begin to guess.

The problem that Ty'ani was most uncomfortable with however, was the fact that this artefact was buried in a Nordic burial site, Bleak Falls Barrow. She remembered Ralof telling her about the Barrow when they had escaped Helgen. Plus, Ty'ani remembered the last time she entered a Nordic tomb. It was with Mercer Frey at Snow Veil Sanctum when they were tracking down Karliah, and where he betrayed her. It was far too difficult to sneak through, and the Draugr completely freaked her enough to keep her from entering another tomb. So she decided that if she was going to do this, she will need help.

Unfortunately, getting the perfect person for the job wasn't as easy as it sounds.

With her chin rested in her hand and an elbow on the table, Ty'ani scoped the Inn. The adventuring types were always attracted to a tavern, so someone was bound to come along eventually. In the meantime, Tyani sat at her table, bored out of her mind, sipping mead from her tankard every now and then.

The Nord woman at the back had looked promising at first, but it turned out that she hated Khajiit, so she was out. A Nord man sitting at the fireplace looked like a possibility as well, until it turned out that he never worked with anyone else. So he refused to go too.

Ty'ani groaned, allowing her head to fall and rest on her upper arm, bending her arm so her fingers began playing with her ear while the fingers on her other hand played with her Amulet of Articulation. '_Oh the Gods hate me._' she thought in irritation.

Just as she was about to give up and begin the journey alone, she sat up in sudden realisation. The Nord woman she met those days ago, maybe she will help her. After all, she said herself that she owed Ty'ani, so perhaps she'll help her with this.

Just as she thought this, the entrance door opened. As fate would have it, the very same woman was right there! Ty'ani grinned, excited at her stroke of luck. Gulping down the last of her mead, Ty'ani rose out of her seat and approached the Nord. The woman had ordered a mug of ale from Hulda and was sipping it carefully. Ty'ani stopped behind her, clearing her throat. "Excuse me."

The women turned to face her, ice blue eyes boring into hers. She frowned in confusion at first until a look of recognition graced her face. "Ah, I remember you. Keeping out of trouble, I hope?" she replied in a low, but kind voice.

Ty'ani nodded. "Most definitely. Listen, I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm in the need for some help and I seem to remember that you still owe me."

"That I do. So, what can I help you with?"

"I have an important assignment to complete but I need the help of someone with experience of exploring Nordic ruins."

The Nord woman smiled gently. "And what make you think that I've explored Nordic ruins?"

A smile stretched across Ty'ani's face then. "Because you look the sort who has seen things not many have." she began, turning on her charm. "Defeated creatures no one would even dream of fighting. If I had to venture a guess, I would say that you are the sort of warrior that would search for honour and glory above riches and fame." a subtle rise of a brow was Ty'ani's only response. "And I would guess that the sort of adventure I'm going on would attract you to find further glory. Or am I wrong?"

The woman just stared at her for what felt like an age, which caused Ty'ani's insides to twist. The Nord took a swig of her ale before smiling. "You make a very convincing argument." she said at last. "Alright, if you tell me what it is your doing exactly, then I will join you."

Inwardly Ty'ani crumpled in relief, but kept her professional face on. "Well as I said, I am on an important mission assigned to me by the Jarl's court wizard. I need to go into Bleak Falls Barrow to retrieve an artefact called a Dragonstone. What I need you to do is to help me get through the Barrow safely."

The Nord nodded, gulping down the last of her mead and sliding the tankard toward Hulda, who grabbed it and began washing it. She stood from the stool, turning to face Ty'ani full bodily. The poor girl had to look up to meet her gaze, since she barely reached the woman's collarbone. "Very well then, I shall accompany you. And if we are to be working together then we should be on a first name basis." she held out her hand to Ty'ani in a hand shake. "I am Haema Steel-Hand."

Ty'ani grasped her hand and shook it firmly. "Ty'ani." she replied simply. "A pleasure Haema."

"Likewise." she replied. "If you would just allow me to return home to pack for the trip, then we shall be on our way."

Ty'ani watched Haema walk out of the tavern, smiling to herself. She walked to the exit, and was about to open the door when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Ty'ani turned to see a tall figure covered head to toe in royal blue robes. Looking under the hood, Ty'ani saw the face of a female Altmer, or High Elf. She looked relatively young, yet her slanted, acid green eyes spoke of wisdom beyond her years. Her olive skin shone with the healthy glow of a young elf, and wisps of auburn hair escaped the prison of her hood. All she carried with her was a small bag that was slung over her shoulder with the satchel sitting on her left hip, and a beautifully crafted elven dagger on her right. She was about as tall, if not taller, then Haema, and her facial features were sharp but still distinctively beautiful, as was her racial trait.

"Forgive me for intruding," she began in a low voice. "But I couldn't help but overhear your conversation with that Nord. I must say that I am intrigued in this assignment that you have. I would ask that you take me along."

Ty'ani blinked in surprise. This elf had quite a nerve to eavesdrop on her conversation. But then again, she was offering to go with her. Ty'ani paused in thought. "Well, if I could ask," she started, her accented voice full of curiosity. "Why would an Altmer of your stature want to go traipsing around a Nordic burial site?"

The Altmer slowly blinked, not at all surprised about the question. "To start with, I have been exploring burial sites for almost half my life. I am somewhat of an adventurer and scholar. The tombs of Skyrim intrigue me the most due to the history hidden away in the walls. Also this Dragonstone you were referring to has peaked my interest, and I would very much like to study it before you hand it to your employer."

Ty'ani paused, letting the Altmer's words sink in. "Well, I suppose those are really good reasons." she said at last. She then glanced at the dagger on her hip. "But I couldn't help but notice your weapon. Is it really efficient for an adventure such as this."

The elf's mouth tugged into a tiny smile, before she lifted her right hand to eye level. All of a sudden her hand was engulfed in a blue aura which danced along her fingers like a flame. After a second she dispersed it. "The dagger is my last resort."

Ty'ani was in awe of what she saw. She had never had the chance to admire magic in use before. It wasn't exactly called for to stand there and watch a wizard cast spells when they're trying to kill you. "Your a mage? Well, your talents could definitely be useful. Okay, your in." she inclined her head, telling the elf to follow her. "As you probably heard, my name is Ty'ani. What's yours?"

"Alasse Míriel." she replied.

They walked down the main road, stopping when they saw Haema exit a house neighbouring Warmaiden's, now with a knapsack of her own over her shoulder. She turned back to face the entrance as a little girl with long black hair tied back in a braid and wearing a blue dress grasped hold of her leg. A second later another, younger girl with shoulder length blonde hair, wearing a green dress attached herself to Haema's other leg. Ty'ani watched as Haema bent down, giving both the girls a squeeze and a kiss on the forehead each before standing up. She looked at the entrance once more when a large Nord man in steel armour with long black hair and a scruffy face stepped out. Ty'ani recognised the man as the same one who was with Haema when she first arrived in Whiterun. Haema smiled, giving the man a long kiss.

Ty'ani cocked a brow. From the day she first met them, she never would have guessed that those two were an item. They acted quite professionally around her when they took down the giant. Plus, the fact that the two of them had children was a surprise in and of itself, since they didn't seem like the sort to raise children.

After saying a final goodbye to her family, Haema turned and walked over to them. She paused when she saw Alasse standing with Ty'ani. She rose a brow. "I never saw this elf with you earlier Ty'ani. Is she coming also?"

"Yes. She's offered to help us recover the Dragonstone, and she also wants to study it. Plus, she's a mage, so I think her talents could come in handy."

Haema just glanced back at Alasse, before nodding. "Very well then. This is your venture Ty'ani, I have no qualms with whom you bring along."

"I am surprised." Alasse exclaimed. "Normally, all I ever receive from your people is ridicule or hate. Rare have I ever met one that does not care for what I am."

"Well, I am not like most of my people. As far as I am concerned, the past should stay in the past."

After Haema and Alasse properly introduced themselves, they set out through Whiterun's gates to Bleak Falls Barrow.

**000110110111**

The journey to Riverwood passed quickly, the three women spending the night at the Sleeping Giant. The following morning, they headed to the Riverwood Trader to stock up their supplies. Since Bleak Falls Barrow was such a large burial sight, it would take them at least a day and a half to make their way through.

Upon entering the small shop, they were immediately greeted with arguing.

"Well, one of us has to do something!" came an irritated woman's voice. It was shortly followed by the voice of the shop's owner, Lucan Valerius.

"I said no! No adventures, no theatrics, no thief chasing!"

The woman, known as Camilla Valerius, Lucan's sister, snapped back. "Well what are you going to do then, huh? Lets hear it!"

"We are done talking about this!" straight after he said that, Lucan glanced toward the doorway, where Haema, Ty'ani and Alasse stood. He started, clearing his throat. "Oh, customers. Sorry you had to hear that." Ty'ani and Haema stepped to the counter, while Alasse leant against the wall by the door. Camilla retreated to a table next to the stairs. Lucan cleared his throat once again. "So, what can I do for the three of you?"

Haema leant against the counter as she replied. "The three of us will be heading on a venture, so we'll be needing rations that'll last between us for at least three days, and a few health potions, if you have them."

Nodding, Lucan shifted to collect the items. All the while, Ty'ani glance between him and Camilla, debating whether or not to address the argument they had. Finally, she spoke. "That argument earlier. What was that about? Did something happen?"

Lucan paused in placing the small bags of rations and bottles of health potions on the counter, stammering out a response. "Uh, yes. We did have a bit of a... break-in." he shook his head, continuing in a reassuring tone. "But of course, we still have plenty to sell. Robbers were only after one thing. An ornament. Solid gold, and in the shape of a dragon's claw."

Just an ornament? While Ty'ani could respect the prospect of a potentially valuable object, even she couldn't see the point behind stealing such a useless trinket. The only thing worth out of such a thing was selling it for gold. Bandits were indeed not very bright. But Ty'ani decided in the end to give out a good impression to her two followers as she offered kindly: "Well, we could get it back for you."

"Really? You could?" Lucan asked, now suddenly excited. "I've got some coin coming in from my last shipment. It's yours if you get my claw back."

Ty'ani nodded, watching Haema pack away their newly purchased items in each of their bags. "If you tell us where they went, we'll get it back after we finished at the Barrow."

Lucan blinked at that. "The Barrow? Why, that's exactly where the thieves took the claw."

Ty'ani and Haema looked at each other in amazement. Alasse shook her head. "So now we're going to waste time finding a trinket?"

Ty'ani glanced at Alasse with a small frown. "Well why not? We're heading that way anyway."

Alasse said nothing more, merely waving an uncaring hand. Haema and Ty'ani finished packing away the rations and the Nord paid for them before heading out.

**000110110111**

Bleak Falls Barrow was indeed quite an imposing structure, the ancient building rising high into the clouds. The rapidly falling snow obscured most of Ty'ani's vision as she tried in vain to get a better look at the top of the towering tomb. Also, the wind and snow flakes were being constantly blown in her face, despite having her hood up to protect her sensitive ears from the biting cold.

Since this was both the province and the hold that Haema was born in, she lead the way up the mountain path to the top where the burial site sat. It took at least half the day to trek up the mountain path, but now the three women stood a few feet from the stairway that lead to the entrance, glancing at the ancient structure.

"I have never actually been this close to this particular Barrow before." Haema said. "The people in Riverwood must be some brave folk to live in the shadow of this place. I'm not sure if I could even relax with being this close to danger."

"I know I wouldn't." Ty'ani replied.

"Well, we will not get anything done if we stand here gawking at the architecture." Alasse exclaimed. "It is best we move now before we loose daylight."

"Yes, of course. Lets go."

They didn't take three steps however before Ty'ani suddenly stopped dead, causing Haema and Alasse to stop as well. They both stared at her in confusion as the Khajiit's ears twitch. She briefly picked up faint sounds of battle travelling through the wind.

"Ty'ani?" Haema started, bringing Ty'ani's attention to her.

"Don't you hear that?"

Haema and Alasse frowned, shaking their heads.

"There's a battle going on up there. Come on!" with that, Ty'ani began sprinting up the stairs, the Altmer and Nord close behind. Once at the top, Ty'ani jumped in shock when she saw a body land in front of her. It was a man in full fur armour, blood dripping from his throat, effectively staining it bright red. A bandit. Hearing a pair of foot steps crunching the snow, Ty'ani glanced up.

What met her eyes were two women. One was a Redguard, the other a Nord. The both of them wore a strange set of clothing, which consisted of a black leather bodice with a red shirt and a black cape. They also wore thick leggings and boots with metal toe-caps. They both wore hoods, obscuring their faces, though long black hair could be seen flying out from under the Redguard's. The Nord woman was holding an elven dagger while her companion held an elaborate ebony sword, both of which were pointing at them.

Ty'ani held her hands up in a sign of surrender, as Haema and Alasse stepped to either side of her. Upon seeing the two women, they froze.

The Redguard took a single step closer to them, raising her sword higher. "Are you with them?" she growled.

Confusion jumped between the three as they pondered over her question. "If you mean the bandits," Ty'ani began. "Then no."

The Nord lowered her dagger, stepping forward to place a hand on her partner's shoulder. "They're not with them, they're just a group of tomb robbers."

"_Tomb robbers_?" Alasse snapped. Haema rested a hand on her arm, giving her a stern look as the two before them sheathed their weapons.

"Well," the Redguard started. "If your not tomb robbers, then what are you doing here?"

"We're here on business." Ty'ani replied without hesitation before crossing her arms. "And we prefer to keep it at that, if you don't mind."

The Redguard smiled. "As you wish..." she paused when she felt her companion shake her shoulder.

"Senynda, we need to leave. They will find out that we're not in there soon."

With a nod, the two of them jogged past the three, hurrying down the stairs. When she got half-way, however, the Redguard stopped and turned back to them. "It's best if you don't mention you saw us here." she cryptically said before running to catch up with her partner.

After a moment, the three glanced at each other in confusion. "What did she mean by 'don't mention we saw them'?" Haema asked.

"I don't know." Ty'ani honestly replied.

Shaking out of her astonishment, Alasse stepped up toward the entrance, gazing back at the other two with a look of impatience. "We don't have time to find out. Lets get inside before it becomes dark."

Nodding in agreement, the women climbed to the entrance, entering Bleak Falls Barrow.

**000110110111**

The Barrow was every bit as creepy as the last one Ty'ani visited. With a dark interior, crumbling walls, spider webs, dusty stone furniture. Oh and lets not forget the corpses. Thankfully though, they didn't run into any Draugr straight away, much to Ty'ani's relief. But they did run into more dead bandits inside the main hall; no doubt the work of the two strange women.

Bypassing the mediocre camp, they continued on through the archway leading down to a set of stairs. Passing through multiple winding corridors, filled with shelves and debris, they encountered no resistance as they walked deeper into the Barrow. It was far too quite, and Ty'ani didn't like it one bit.

It took a few long hours, but as they walked around another bend, they all too suddenly heard the sound of battle. Ty'ani started, ears twitching when she heard the native language of her people, shouting out commands and insults. One was male, and the other female. The three quickened their pace.

The corridor opened into a large chamber, with a small upper-floor balcony and large decorative stones with animals carved on them on the wall above it. Though one of them had crumbled and fallen to the floor. Though that wasn't what caught their attention.

In the middle of the room were bodies of two bandits, another standing holding his war axe in front of him, standing off against a male Khajiit. They spotted a female kneeling on the ground grasping a bleeding wound on her side.

Ty'ani reacted quickly, quick-drawing her bow and an ebony arrow and letting the arrow loose in record time. Due to her haste to help, Ty'ani didn't aim, so the arrow embedded into the bandit's side. But it was enough. The bandit jumped to the side from the bout of pain along his left, ice and sparks erupting from the pierced flesh as he let out a cry. It was all the male Khajiit needed. He swung his sword, catching the throat, blood pouring out everywhere. Once the bandit fell only did he sheathe his sword, turning to attend to the other on the floor.

Ty'ani replaced her bow, entering into the room proper with Haema and Alasse behind her. Only now that the battle was over did Ty'ani get a better look at these two Khajiit.

The male was a tall and heavily muscled man, no doubt to years of fighting. His fur a dull grey with black tiger strips and light brown hair pulled back into a long braid that reached his mid-back and a light brown mane with small braids in it. Though his fur showed signs of ageing, with silver hairs dotting his face and hair. He could be in his late forties by Ty'ani's guess. His eyes were the colour of amber with a single scar that ran from his right brow to his cheek. The armour he wore was quite unusual, with a light grey cuirass that buckled at the front with a long chain mail shirt under it. Heavy shoulder guards sat above his shoulders with brown gauntlets strapped around his lower arms. He wore black leggings and thick brown boots with knee guards. His weapon was a silver sword with ornate designs and a round silver shield that was baring a strange bronze symbol.

The female on the other hand was much younger then her companion, looking to be in her early twenties. Her fur was a dark grey with light brown patches along her cheeks and neck. She had deep red war paint drawn on her left brow reaching her left ear. Her light brown hair was short and uneven, with small braids circling around her head and a loose ponytail capturing as much hair as it could grasp at the back. Both her ears were adorned with gold rings. Her face was quite angular and rugged, with three claw scars running down her right cheek and one framing her left eye, which were amber like the male's. She stood at a reasonable height for her people with a slender but muscled build. She wore the same armour as the man, with a war axe with the same ornate symbol on it, and Dwarven bolts sat on her belt and a crossbow on her back.

Ty'ani frowned however. The scent of the two Khajiit had assaulted her nostrils since she entered the room. While there was nothing unusual about the male, the female for some reason smelt different. Wrong. There was something about this woman that didn't sit right with Ty'ani, yet no matter how much she tried, she just couldn't place a finger on what it was.

All the while Ty'ani studied them, the woman was sputtering out the most foul language Ty'ani had ever heard in their native tongue, grasping tightly at her wound. The male was trying to gently but firmly tell her to let go so he could look at it. Ty'ani moved closer to them, "Are you both alright?" she asked softly.

The female Khajiit's fiery gaze snapped to her, a scowl evident on her face. "What the hells do you think, princess!" she snapped.

"Zahraji!" the male snapped, "Show a bit more respect. They just saved our lives."

Ty'ani flinched, suddenly feeling very small under the other female's gaze, "Well," Ty'ani began awkwardly. "We have some healing potions to spare, if you..."

"No no, that's quite alright. We have our own stock, but thank you for offering." the male quickly replied, pulling a healing potion from his knapsack, and handed it to the still cursing girl. She snatched it and gulped it down, scrunching her face up as the foul taste hit her tongue. She let out a satisfied sigh as the wound began to stitch itself back together.

Haema crossed her arms, regarding the two of them as the male helped the other off the ground. "What are you two doing down here?"

The two of them looked at her as the male let loose a smile. "My name is Jo'Rakha. This is my daughter, Zahraji. We are members of the Dawnguard."

This revelation was quite a surprise. The Dawnguard was quite famous even before Ty'ani had arrived in Skyrim. Fearless warriors and great strategists, the Dawnguard were one of, if not the greatest vampire hunters of this age. Though, from the rumours Ty'ani had heard, the Dawnguard were now completely gone. Ever since the vampires had destroyed the Hall of the Vigilant, Dawnguard warriors had been dropping like flies over the past two months. It was believed that the order was destroyed when the vampires finally attacked their fortress. Evedently, it seemed that the rumours were wrong.

"The Dawnguard?" Haema sputtered, surprise colouring her tone. "But I thought the order had been disbanded."

Jo'Rakha shook his head. "Not disbanded. Almost destroyed." he corrected in a matter-of-fact voice. "There are still a few of us left hunting the vampires. The reason we were here was because we were hunting a couple of extremely powerful vampires ourselves. There had been rumours that they were hiding out here."

"I never heard anything about vampires being here." Alasse commented.

"You better believe it elf." Zahraji stated. "Damn vampires are everywhere. Serana and Senynda are now the most powerful ones since we raided their little fortress. They're on the run now."

Ty'ani straightened when she heard the names, holding her hand up to stop the woman. "Hold on, Senynda? Wasn't that what that woman called her partner outside?" she asked her two companions.

Jo'Rakha and Zahraji frowned at that. The latter shook her head. "Wait, you mean to tell us that they were outside?"

Jo'Rakha growled, punching the nearby wall. "Damn it! They escaped again!"

"I'm so sorry." Ty'ani tried to assure. "If we had known..."

"No no, you couldn't have known. Those two have mastered covering their tracks, there couldn't have been any way for you to know it was them. As far as Skyrim is concerned, they don't even exist."

"That doesn't matter!" Zahraji snarled. "They've slipped out of our grasp again! It'll be weeks before we can track them down!"

Alasse shook her head at this bantering. "Alright." she yelled out, "This isn't getting us anywhere. While you have our sympathies, we have a job that needs to be done here, and we cannot delay."

Zahraji frowned at Alasse when she finished her sentence. "Sheesh lady, have a little patience why don't ya."

"As if your any better." Jo'Rakha muttered. He returned his attention to the group of women before him. "By the way, what time of day is it? When we entered this place, it was mid-morning."

The three of them thought for a moment before Haema finally replied. "As far as we know, it's evening."

Zahraji sighed. "We're definitely not going to catch them now."

Ty'ani glanced at her followers, beginning to drop her knapsack. "If it really is evening, maybe we should think about getting some rest. We can continue tomorrow." after acknowledging their sounds of agreement, Ty'ani began to unpack her sleeping bag.

Once the sleeping mat was rolled out, Ty'ani glanced up at the two vampire hunters. The two of them looked quite lost, so she spoke up, effectively gaining their attention. "Hey, why don't you two come with us?"

The two of them looked at her, astounded. Shortly after, Zahraji's expression was replaced with disbelief. "Are you being serious, princess?"

"I am. You can adventure with us until you find your vampires again."

Jo'Rakha glanced at his daughter then. "It's not like we had anything better planned." he reasoned as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Besides, they cannot hide forever. They will turn up again. Might as well make the most of the little freedom we have now."

Zahraji grumbled as she pondered over her father's words. Ty'ani, Haema and Alasse stayed respectfully quiet as she made her decision. Eventually, she lifted her gaze up to stare at her father. "Okay fine. We'll go with them for a little bit."

With that now out of the way, the five of them settled down for some much needed sleep.

**000110110111**

Not long after they awoke the next morning, the five adventurers found themselves in a corridor covered in cob-webs. The sticky substance stretched across the entire wall to the ceiling. Ty'ani shivered as they travelled down the narrow walkway, knowing immediately what the cob-webs represented. She was tempted to refuse to go any further until it was confirmed that there was nothing ahead of them. But before she had the chance to speak, a panicked voice sounded out from the chamber ahead of them.

"Is-is someone coming?" the voice called out. "Is that you Hadvir? Jorn? Soline? I know I ran away with the claw, but I need help!"

Haema narrowed her eyes as the group sped up, suddenly wary. "Be careful," she warned as they reached the doorway to the next room. The doorway was covered in a thick layer of webbing, which Zahraji and Jo'Rakha began cutting through. "It could be more bandits. It may be a trap."

"Only one way to find out." the Khajiit woman replied as she sliced through the last strand. With their weapons at the ready, they filed through the door. The chamber was quite large and circular, the walls yet again covered with webbing. However there was also large pale sacks in the corners of the room. Large spider eggs. This was a spider nest alright.

Ty'ani almost whimpered when she saw this. Ty'ani was a major arachnophobic, where even the tiniest of spiders caused her to freeze in fear. If there was a Frostbite spider in here, she knew she would completely freak.

Gazing across to the opposite side of the room, they all spotted the one whom was crying out for help. He was too far to clearly distinguish his features, plus he was tangled in a huge mass of webbing. It was clear that there was indeed still a spider lurking about. Haema and Jo'Rahka edged further into the room, originally to see if the man was alright, but stopped short when they heard a distinctive chittering noise. The man went wide eyed as he turned his gaze up to the ceiling, his voice cracking as he called for help. Following his gaze, the five adventurers spotted a large hole in the ceiling. From it came the largest Frostbite spider Ty'ani had ever seen. She sucked in a sharp breath as it's eight hairy legs landed on the ground and stared straight at them. Saliva and poison dripped from it's mandibles as it charged. With their weapons poised, Haema and Jo'Rahka let out their own war cries and charged in turn, Zahraji rose her crossbow and Alasse charged a firebolt spell in each hand.

Ty'ani was the only one who didn't move at first, her muscles locked in place as fear temporarily took over. As the spider shuffled closer to her companions, Ty'ani backed as far from the spider as she could get with a small shriek, wrenching her bow off her back at the same time.

Haema and Jo'Rakha reached the spider, bringing their weapons down on it just as two firebolts exploded on the tough carapace. The magical attack was followed up by two more from Alasse as the spider retaliated. Screaming from the fire licking at it's body, the giant arachnid bucked up onto four of it's back legs, rearing the front two in the air. Snapping it's mandibles, it slammed it's legs down on Haema, who brought her axe up in front of herself to block the snapping jaws from tearing into her. The Nord warrior almost buckled under the intense strength of the spider as it tried to fight it's mandibles around the axe's shaft, her muscles shaking as she pushed back with all her might.

It suddenly let loose a deafening squeal as Jo'Rakha took advantage of it's distraction, swinging his sword at one of it's legs. It scrambled away, seeming to whimper and growl, with one of it's legs utterly useless, hanging by a single thread to the rest of it's body.

Seeing it now vulnerable, the three ranged attackers let loose arrows and spells respectively. All three projectiles struck true, crippling the spider further. It collapsed, it's feelers rubbing it's own face as it attempted to regain it's footing. It's scream was silenced by Jo'Rakha putting it out of it's misery, plunging his sword through it's head. Wrenching it out, the Khajiit male grimaced at the ichor that clung to the blade.

As he shook off the gooey substance, Alasse, Zahraji and Ty'ani rejoined the group. Ty'ani shook with disgust as she eyed to corpse. "I _hate_ those damn things." she muttered darkly. She saw Zahraji briefly scowl as the older woman turned to her.

"So I noticed," she grumbled. "You were hardly any help in that fight at all."

Ty'ani huffed. "It's not my fault I'm scared of those disgusting giant _monsters_!" she snapped, barging past Zahraji and stormed over to the man caught in the webbing. Stopping before him, Tyani looked up to the man -noticing he was actually a Dark Elf now she got a better look at him- crossing her arms as he struggled in the webbing.

"You did it, you killed it." he hurriedly stated. "Now cut me down before anything else shows up."

Ty'ani merely shifted her weight onto her left leg, popping her hip out as she snarled back at him. "Where is the Golden Claw? I know you were the one who took it."

"Yes," he stuttered. "Yes, the claw! I know how it works. The claw, the markings, the door in the Hall of Stories. I know how they all fit together!"

Ty'ani frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Wait," Alasse suddenly exclaimed as she and the others stepped up behind Ty'ani, gaining all the assembled attention. "This claw. Does it look like this?" she began to dig around in her small satchel. Amazingly, almost her entire arm disappeared into the tiny bag, causing the others to gawk at her. Ignoring the astonished looks, Alasse removed her arm. Held in her hand was a silver object shaped as a dragon's paw, with the claws made from ivory. The bandit nodded when he saw it.

"Yes, that's it. It looks like that, except golden." he glanced back at Ty'ani. "Please, help me down and I'll show you how it works. You won't believe the power the Nords have hidden there."

Ty'ani just rose an unconvincing brow. She just couldn't shake the fact that this man was lying through his teeth, just so she would cut him down. Bandits were always the same; they'll stab you in the back at a moments notice. On the other hand, they did need to get the claw back, and the only way to do that was to release him. With a sigh, she relented. "Okay fine. Let me see if I can cut you down."

An excited and relieved look crossed the Dunmer's face then. "Sweet breath of Arkay, thank you!"

Asking Haema, Jo'Rakha and Zahraji to help her, they cut their way through the thick sticky substance holding the bandit in place. It took a bit, but at last he fell to the floor. He was still covered in a little bit of webbing, but he was free. A thing he took full advantage of, just like Ty'ani predicted. He turned tail and ran through the newly made hole, into the corridor beyond.

"You fools. Why should I share the treasure with any-"

Before he could finish, he let out a shocked gasp as something pierced it's way into the back of his neck. He was dead before he hit the ground. Falling face first, it was revealed that an ebony dagger was buried in his neck. From inside the chamber, the four adventurers stared at Ty'ani, all with impressed looks on their faces.

"Nice shot." Zahraji praised.

Retrieving her dagger, Ty'ani turned out his pockets, swiping the little gold he had on him. From the bag he had slung over his shoulder, Ty'ani discovered the Golden Claw and a journal. Hefting up the heavy claw, she slipped it into her pack while she handed the journal to Haema. The Nord looked first at the journal in confusion and then at Ty'ani. "What are you giving me this for?"

"Because I can't read." Ty'ani replied, rising from her knelt position.

"Ah." opening the journal, Haema quickly skimmed through it. After a moment, she closed the journal. She explained that the journal was very brief in explaining how the claw worked, but Alasse assured them that she knew what she was doing.

Continuing through the corridor, they finally ran into the one thing Ty'ani was dreading -beside the spider. Draugr.

But with the five of them, they made quick progress through the crypt, killing everything that stood in their way. Again it took a long time, stopping only to rest and eat, but finally they arrived at the Hall of Stories that the bandit mentioned. The stone door had three animals carved into the surface of the rings. The top was a butterfly, the middle an owl and the bottom a bear.

"Take out the claw," Alasse suggested. "And look at the palm of it. That is the sequence that the door needs to be."

Ty'ani took the claw from her knapsack and studied the palm. The carvings were a bear on the top, a butterfly in the middle and an owl at the bottom. So with help from Haema, Ty'ani turned each of the rings until the carvings matched that of the claw. Alasse took the claw from Ty'ani, properly inserting it in the slot and turning it precisely. The door clicked, the top and middle rings turned to the same as the bottom, and the door began to slide slowly into the ground.

The five of them walked through, finding themselves in an enormous cavern. At the very end was a raised platform with a large wall sitting at the far side and a coffin and chest next to that. Zahraji whooped in joy as she ran for the chest and began rummaging through it. Everyone else gazed around the cavern in awe.

"Incredible." Haema whispered. "Absolutely incredible."

Alasse was gazing at the stone wall, studying the scratchings on it. She begun to dig into her satchel, her entire arm disappearing into the tiny bag once again and pulled out a book -that would realistically be impossible to fit into the satchel- and an inkwell and quill. She began roughly copying the scratching on the wall.

Ty'ani, meanwhile, had been searching around the cove for the Dragonstone. While she didn't actually know what it was she was looking for, she still checked every nook and cranny. Unfortunately, she found no sign of it. Confirmation from Zahraji suggested that it wasn't in the chest either. She let out a frustrated groan. '_Well, Farengar did say that it may not be here. What a waste of time._' She climbed the stairs to the platform, ready to report the news to the others when she stopped. She could hear something.

Twitching her ears, she searched for the source of the sound. "Hey," she said to the others. "Do any of you hear that?"

"Hear what Ty'ani?" Haema asked.

"A chanting noise. Like a group of people saying one word over and over."

The rest of them quietened down, trying their hardest to hear what Ty'ani was describing, but they couldn't hear anything. Zahraji shook her head, continuing to sort through the loot she retrieved from the chest. "I knew it. She's crazy."

Ty'ani now started to get frustrated. "I'm being serious, there's something here!"

"Ty'ani," Haema started firmly, "There's nothing here."

"I'm telling you!" she practically shrieked. "There _is_ something here! Wait," she angled her ears towards the wall, pointing toward it. "It's coming from over there."

Alasse sighed. "There is no chanting over here Ty'ani, or I would be able to hear it."

But as Ty'ani got closer to the wall, the louder the chanting became. Louder and louder until Ty'ani was certain her head was going to burst. One of the scratchings on the wall suddenly lit up, and tendrils of light began to exit the wall, travelling toward her. To say the others were shocked by this revelation was a complete understatement. As suddenly as it started however, it ended. Ty'ani turned back to the others a confused look on her face. After what felt like an age of just staring at each other, Ty'ani opened her mouth and uttered a single word.

"_Fus_."

All of a sudden, it seemed as though the entire earth began to shake as the coffin burst open, the stone lid thumping on the ground. Out from the coffin came another Draugr. Yet this one looked much different from the others they encountered. It was heavily armoured from head to toe, and it carried an ebony great-sword.

The moment the coffin had burst open, the five adventurers unsheathed their weapons. The Draugr charged the nearest person, which happened to be Zahraji, swinging its sword at her. She thankfully dodged out the way in time, jumping back to rejoin the others.

Ty'ani let loose an arrow which caused it to stagger, while Jo'Rakha, Zahraji and Haema charged and Alasse charged a Fireball spell. The moment it recovered, however, it did something none of them expected.

"_Fus Ro DA!_"

A blue pulse of energy left the Draugr and came hurtling toward the warriors. When it hit them, the sheer power behind the attack was so intense that it sent them all flying. Jo'Rakha, Zahraji and Haema fell to the lower level, Alasse went skidding along the stone floor and Ty'ani was thrown against the wall.

The Draugr charged again, the great-sword pointed ahead, aiming straight for Ty'ani.

Ty'ani was already on her knees when she spotted the charging undead creature. Since she was still in shock, she clumsily rolled to the side as it swung the sword at her. It wasn't enough however, since the tip of the sharp sword grazed her upper arm. She let out a pained gasp when her shoulder and upper arm flared in white hot pain, before half a second later it suddenly felt extremely cold. Glancing at her wound, she immediately spotted small crystalline ice spreading from the cut. '_Damn, it's weapon is enchanted._'

The Draugr swung it's sword at her again, but this time Ty'ani was ready. She dodged the blow, leaping to her feet and delivered a roundhouse kick to its chest causing it to stagger again. While distracted, she jumped away from it to retrieve her bow, which flew out of her grasp when it did whatever it that magical attack was.

By now, the others had recovered. They returned to the platform, charging the creature again as Ty'ani grabbed her bow. "Be careful!" She called to them. "That weapon is enchanted!"

The Draugr swung the sword at Jo'Rakha. He thankfully had his shield raised so the enchanted blade didn't catch him, but the power behind the swing caused him to stumble, sending a painful vibration down his arm. While it was distracted with the Khajiit male, Haema came up behind it, burying her axe into it's back. The massive blade struck true, but the Draugr completely ignored the pain, instead it swung the sword in a wide arch, almost catching Haema's head if she hadn't ducked in time. Ripping her axe from it's back, she stepped away just as a bolt suddenly appeared in the middle of it's forehead, making it stagger. Zahraji growled as she reloaded her crossbow, just as Ty'ani appeared next to her, releasing her own arrow.

Alasse on the other hand, knew that a Fireball would be the last thing that she would cast, as her companions would be caught in the blast. So instead, she changed to duel casting a Lighting Bolt spell, beginning to charge the bolt with both hands. "Let us end this." she snarled as she let the lighting free, the thick bolt of pure electricity flying free from her hands. The attack struck the Draugr in the chest, shocking it ramrod straight as the current flowed through it's body.

Seeing the opportunity, Haema and Jo'Rakha attacked simultaneously. The Nord's axe descending into it's shoulder, while the Khajiit's sword stabbed through it's chest. The Draugr gurgled as the lifeless blue eyes went dull, before slumping to the ground, now permanently dead.

They all stepped back, sheathing their weapons only when they were certain that it would stay down. Haema panted before turning to face Ty'ani, a confused look on her face. "What happened there Ty'ani? What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything." Ty'ani defended. "I just walked up to the wall, that's all."

Zahraji glared at her suspiciously. "You made the wall freaking glow. Are you actually a mage and you haven't told us?"

"No, she's not a mage." Alasse said, as she rejoined the group. "I would have sensed it otherwise."

"Then what, in the name of Stendarr, happened!"

Jo'Rakha placed a firm hand on his daughter's shoulder in an effort to calm her down. "As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter what happened. It doesn't seem to have effected her in any way."

"Well actually, there was one thing." she rubbed her hands together nervously, "A word came into my head. Something like this happened to me the last time I explored a Nordic tomb. It was in Snow Veil Sanctum."

Alasse frown at her explanation. "But that place has been locked up tighter then a miser's purse. How did you manage to get in?"

"I had help then. But anyway, the same thing happened there. Except it was a different word. That one was _Zun_, and this one was _Fus_."

A thoughtful expression crossed Alasse's face as she listened to the brief explanation. It seems that there really are more to these walls then she originally anticipated. If Snow Veil Sanctum was open now, she would have to travel there to study the wall within.

"Look, Jo'Rakha is right." Haema suddenly exclaimed. "In the end this doesn't matter, and arguing about it will get us nowhere." saying no more, she knelt down next to the body of the Draugr they just defeated. She had spotted a large satchel attached to it, and when she opened it, it revealed a large flat stone with patterns scratched on it. Upon closer observation, Haema realized that it was a map of Skyrim. So this must be the Dragonstone.

"Ty'ani, I believe we have it." she effortlessly lifted the stone to show the others.

"Of course the Draugr would be the one who'd have it." Ty'ani commented irritably. "Well, lets get out of here then. I've had enough of this place to last a lifetime."

**000110110111**

It was dark and raining when they stepped out of the dusty interior of the tomb and into the fresh air. Due to the late hour and the amount of clouds in the sky, they deduced that the sun had just recently set. So they quickly made their way to Riverwood to drop off the golden claw to Lucan. Needless to say he was extremely happy to have it back, and paid them the agreed sum for it.

Right now, the band of adventurers were sitting in the Sleeping Giant Inn, grabbing a quick meal before turning in for the night. Alasse was using this time to scribble in her log, studying the Dragonstone in full detail.

"Well," Jo'Rakha began, gaining the attention of all of them, "This was certainly an interesting venture. Me and Zahraji have been talking, and we decided that we'll will stick around for a while longer."

"But," Ty'ani protested. "What about those vampires your hunting?"

Zahraji waved her hand in dismissal at that. "They're long gone. Do you realize how much of a pain in the ass it is to track down a couple of vampires. Besides, dad's right, they will turn up eventually. In the meantime, we'll stick around. Might be fun."

Ty'ani smiled at the news. "Well, I don't mind if you stay. Your more then welcome to."

**000110110111**

_The plot thickens._

_Here are a few fun facts about the OCs introduced so far:_

_Ty'ani: is nineteen, a master thief and a master archer._

_Okan-Ru: a Dark Brotherhood Shadowscale, master assassin, was originally leader of the Dark Brotherhood in Cyrodiil before all the Sanctuaries were destroyed._

_Haema: Harbinger of the Companions, was recently cured of lycanthropy, worships Talos._

_Alasse: Arch-Mage of the College of Winterhold, proficient in all schools of magic, alchemist, enchanter._

_Zahraji: Daughter of Jo'Rahka, Dawnguard warrior._

_Jo'Rahka: Father of Zahraji, Dawnguard warrior._

_And there we go. I'm not going to reveal much else about them, that will come later in the story. These are just small basic facts._

_R&R as always._


	4. Dragon Rising

**4E 201  
5th of Evening Star**

The five adventurers strode up the stairs to Dragonsreach as rain started to dribble from the sky. The trip from Riverwood had been uneventful, besides a pack of wolves attacking them, but that was dealt with fairly quickly. Haema had briefly returned to her home to see to her children. Her husband was out, so she checked in on them and asked Adrienne to take care of them for a while before returning to the group.

They all waited in the Dragonsreach dining area as Ty'ani went to Farengar's corner of the palace, the Dragonstone held against her body as she struggled not to drop it. Standing at the doorway, she found that Farengar had company. A woman in leather armour with a hood covering her face was leaning against his desk studying a tome as Farengar spoke to her.

"You see. The terminology is clearly First Era or even earlier. I'm convinced this is a copy of a much older text." he explained eagerly. "Perhaps dating back to just after the Dragon War. If so, I could use this to cross-reference the names with other later texts."

"Good." the woman replied, standing upright to gaze at Farengar completely. "I'm glad your making progress. My employers are anxious to have some tangible answers." It was clear that the both of them were quite busy, so Ty'ani waited for one of them to notice her.

Farengar smiled brightly at her then. "Oh, have no fear. The Jarl himself has finally taken an interest, so I am now able to devote most of my time to this research."

"Time is running, Farengar, don't forget. This isn't some theoretical question. Dragons have come back."

Farengar nodded. "Yes, yes. Don't worry. Although the chance to see a living dragon up close would be tremendously valuable..." he moved to her side, now pulling out another tome and placing it on the table in front of her. "Now, let me show you something else I found... very intriguing... I think your employers may be interested as well..."

"You have a visitor." the woman interrupted, her gaze now fixed on Ty'ani standing in the doorway. She carefully stepped into the room, biting her lip as she did so.

"Is this a bad time?" she asked.

"Ah!" Farengar exclaimed excitedly, moving around the table to guide Ty'ani further inside. "Yes, the Jarl's protégée! Back from Bleak Falls Barrow? You didn't die it seems." once by the desk, Ty'ani hefted the heavy stone she was carrying onto the surface as carefully as she could, letting out a sigh of relief when the weight was taken off her arms. '_How Haema was able to carry that thing around without breaking a sweat, I don't know._' she thought with irritation. Farengar's eyes lit up. "Ah! The Dagonstone of Bleak Falls Barrow! Seems you are a cut above the usual brute the Jarl sends my way."

Ty'ani stepped away from the desk, rubbing her sore muscles as she did so. "Okay, so what reward do I get from this?" she asked almost too eagerly. A ghost of a smile graced Farengar's face at her enquiry.

"You'll have to see the Jarl about that. Maybe his steward, Avenicci. I'm sure one of them will pay you appropriately." he turned his attention to the woman he was talking to previously, seeing that she was eyeing the two of them, as he continued to talk to the young Khajiit. "My... associate here will be pleased to see your handiwork. She discovered its location, by means she has so far declined to share with me." he turned his attention to the woman, beginning to address her. "So, your information was correct after all. And we have our friend here to thank for recovering it for us."

An impressed look slowly emerged on the woman's face as she studied Ty'ani. "You went into Bleak Falls Barrow and got that? Nice work."

Ty'ani smiled at the compliment. "Well, I didn't do it alone." she replied simply.

"But still, well done. Not may people would brave a Nordic burial crypt." she turned her gaze back to Farengar. "Just send me a copy when you've deciphered it."

Just as Farengar was about to reply, a familiar voice suddenly shouted out his name. A moment later, Irileth appeared in the doorway, looking quite stricken. "Farengar, you need to come at once. A dragon's been sighted nearby." she briefly glanced at Ty'ani as she continued. "You should come too."

"A dragon!" Farengar enthusiastically exclaimed, jogging out of the room, Ty'ani not far behind. The others gave her questioning looks each as they ran past. She signalled for them to wait while she went with Irileth and Farengar. "How exciting! Where was it seen? What was it doing?"

"I'd take this a bit more seriously if I were you. If a dragon decides to attack Whiterun, I don't know if we can stop it." Irileth signalled to the guard that had followed her and the four of them quickly made their way up to the second level. "Let's go."

Ty'ani had only ever been to the top floor of Dragonsreach once, and that was when she had that special job for the Thieves Guild. The main chamber was a large strategy room with multiple maps of Skyrim and documents of the war and other such business. A large set of double doors lead to the grand balcony at the back of the palace, with archways leading to balcony's overlooking the throne room opposite that. On the far side was a smaller set of double doors which lead to the Jarl's sleeping quarters. Jarl Balgruuf stood in the centre of the chamber, crossing his arms as he addressed the guardsmen that was with them.

"So, Irileth tells me you came from the western watchtower?"

"Yes my lord." the guard replied.

"Tell him what you told me." Irileth said. "About the dragon."

The guard shook his head, almost as if he didn't want to. "Uh... that's right. We saw it coming from the south. It was fast... faster then anything I've ever seen."

"What did it do?" Balgruuf asked hurriedly. "Is it attacking the watchtower?"

"No my lord. It was just circling overhead when I left. I never ran so fast in my life... I thought it would come after me for sure."

Balgruuf nodded, a small smile on his face as he patted the guard's shoulder. "Good work, son. We'll take it from here. Head down to the barracks for some food and rest. You've earned it." as the guard went to do so, Balgruuf turned his attention to his Housecarl. "Irileth, you'd better gather some guardsmen and get down there."

Irileth nodded. "I've already ordered my men to muster near the main gate." she replied confidently.

"Good. Don't fail me." he then glanced at Ty'ani, who stood next to Farengar. "There's no time to stand on ceremony, my friend. I need your help again. I want you to go with Irileth and help her fight this dragon."

Ty'ani started when she heard that, almost panicking. "But," she squeaked. "I can barely fight a Draugr one on one! I don't know how to fight dragons!"

"And neither do we. I'm asking you because you survived Helgen, so you have more experience with dragons then anyone else here. But I haven't forgotten the service you did for me in retrieving the Dragonstone for Farengar. As a token of my esteem, I have instructed Avenicci that you are now permitted to purchase property in the city."

Ty'ani nodded as Farengar stepped forward. "I should come along. I would very much like to see this dragon."

Balgruuf frown at this request, shaking his head. "No. I can't afford to risk both of you. I need you here working on ways to defend the city against these dragons."

While Farengar looked disappointed, there was some truth to Balgruuf's words. He was the only one in the city who knew the most about dragons. If he were to be killed, the city would be defenceless without his knowledge. "As you command."

He made his way back down the stairs as Ty'ani followed. Haema walked up to her when she reached the bottom level. "Ty'ani, what's happening? What's going on." she asked in a worried tone.

Ty'ani took a breath before replying. "I'm going to be need all of your help again. We're going to fight a dragon."

Shocked expressions graced the faces of her companions as they took in this news. "Seriously?" Zahraji exclaimed in excitement. "Alright, now we get a _real_ challenge!"

"Don't get too excited Zahraji." Jo'Rakha warned, a concerned look in his amber eyes.

Irileth stepped up behind them before the Khajiit woman could reply. Her red eyes darted to Haema, widening them slightly. "Harbinger. You are coming also?"

Haema returned Irileth's gaze. "Yes Housecarl. It is my sole duty to protect Skyrim and her people. I will aid you in defending Whiterun."

Irileth nodded. "Very well. My men are gathered by the main gate. We must make haste."

With Irileth leading, the six of them jogged through the bustling streets of Whiterun, ignoring the confused and inquiring looks of the citizens. Once in the Plains District, they spotted a group of four guards waiting outside the barracks. The adventurers stopped beside them as Irileth addressed her men.

"Here's the situation." she said as she marched back and forth in front of the assembled warriors. "A dragon is attacking the Western Watchtower."

Shocked and fearful expressions crossed the men's faces, each voicing out their disbelief.

"You heard right!" Irileth continued when they quietened. "I said a dragon! I don't much care where it came from or who sent it. What I do know is that it's made the mistake of attacking Whiterun!"

"But Housecarl..." one of the guardsmen stuttered, gaining Irileth's attention. "How can we fight a dragon?"

Irileth closed her eyes before continuing to pace. "That's a fair question. None of us has ever seen a dragon before, or expected to face one in battle. But we are honour bound to fight it, even if we fail. This dragon is threatening our homes... our families." she paused as she crossed her arms, a look of determination crossing her face. "Could you call yourselves Nords if you ran from this monster? Are you going to let me face this thing alone?"

The guards straightened as they replied that they wouldn't. One lowered his head, muttering that they were doomed. Irileth continued to raise their spirits.

"But it's more then our honour at stake here. Think of it- the first dragon seen in Skyrim since the last age. The glory of killing it is ours, if your with me! So what do you say? Shall we go kill us a dragon!"

The guards raised their fists in the air, yelling out in agreement, their courage now increased tenfold. Ty'ani had to say that she was impressed with Irileth's little speech. She had a certain fire about her that made her more a Nord then a Dunmer. It was that fire that rose her spirits along with the guards. She was ready to do this.

"Lets move out."

**000110110111**

Fire was everywhere, thick smoke rising to the heavens as the small band of soldiers approached the tower. Rubble littered the ground with corpses of guards laying amongst the destruction. Strangely though, most of the bodies were frozen solid. Ty'ani's sensitive nose picked up the distinctive scent of death and she shivered, wrapping her arms around herself. Haema, noticing Ty'ani's discomfort, placed a hand on her small shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. The young Khajiit looked at Haema, flashing a small smile at her.

Jo'Rakha, Zahraji and Alasse frowned at the destruction as Irileth scanned the darkening sky. She narrowed her eyes, raising her hand over them to block out the rain. "No sign of any dragon right now, but it sure looks like he's been here."

She turned to the assembled group, seeing the uneasiness on most of their faces. "I know it looks bad," she reassured. "but we've got to figure out what happened. And if that dragon is still skulking around somewhere." she drew her sword, signalling the others to do the same. "Spread out and look for survivors. We need to know what we're dealing with."

The group fanned out, covering all corners of the tower. Haema, Jo'Rakha and a couple of guardsmen searched the bodies for signs of life while Irileth, Zahraji, Alasse and the rest of the guards searched the parameter and the sky.

Meanwhile, Ty'ani approached the entrance of the tower. Her bow was out with an arrow ready as she carefully gazed inside. She jumped when another guard wearing a fearful expression suddenly sneaked round the corner. "No! Get back! It's still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!"

Irileth ran up the ramp, addressing the distressed guard. "Guardsmen. What happened here, where's this dragon? Quickly now!"

"I don't know!" he yelled before an echoing roar sounded from over the mountains. "Kynareth save us, here he comes again..."

They all looked to the mountains to the south, quickly spotting the giant outline of the dragon through the rain flying straight for them. Irileth snarled, tightening her grip on her sword as she conjured a lighting spell in her other. "Here he comes! Find cover and make every arrow count!"

Ty'ani shivered in fear as the dragon drew ever closer. Straight away, she could tell that it wasn't the same dragon then the one at Helgen, as this one had shimmering blue scales. But her theory that they were amassing their numbers proved to be true. Skyrim was going to be overwhelmed by these monsters like she feared. Her companions braced themselves as the dragon flew overhead, roaring at the warriors below it. Ty'ani pulled back her bow string, releasing an arrow in record time. Zahraji followed Ty'ani's example, firing a bolt from her crossbow. Both projectiles flew harmlessly into the air as the dragon soared at breakneck speed around the tower.

Those of them with swords or battle-axes were useless if the dragon continued to stay in the air. Only those with bows or spells had any chance of hitting it. However, with the speed the dragon was travelling at- slowing occasionally only to use it's breath weapon- it was almost impossible to get a good hit on it. Alasse and Irileth seemed to be the only ones scoring hits on it with their lighting spells, but even they were glancing blows.

The dragon folded it's wings as it turned sharply in the air and dived, heading straight for Haema.

"_FO KRAH DIIN!"_

A ball of ice erupted from it's mouth at Haema, as it angled it's wings to climb back into the sky. Haema dove to the side to avoid the frost. It impacted upon the ground, sending shards of ice in all directions. Haema landed hard on her side, covering her head to protect her face from the sharp chunks of ice. She scrambled back to her feet, returning her gaze to the dragon.

Mirmulnir laughed mockingly at the mortals and their foolish attempts to hit him, as he continued soaring over them. "_Thurri du hin sille ko Sovngarde_!" he yelled as he dove once again, aiming for a white Khajiit.

Ty'ani ducked behind a boulder to avoid another breath attack hurled toward her and one of the guards. Due to her fast reflexes, she easily avoided the blast. The guard wasn't as lucky. The ice covered his body, freezing most of him in place for a moment. Ty'ani frowned. They weren't getting anywhere at this rate. They wouldn't be able to dodge the attacks forever, and the dragon will defeat them easily if they tire. Especially when it was in the air, as it had an advantage there. They needed a new plan. Ty'ani looked around, trying to find a way to get the dragon to land.

As she gazed to the top of the watchtower, an idea formed in her mind.

As quickly as she could, Ty'ani ran for the entrance to the tower. Zahraji spotted her and frowned. "Oi princess! What in Oblivion do you think your doing?" Ty'ani didn't answer, not that Zahraji would have heard it anyway as she dodged yet another attack.

Ty'ani dashed up the stairs, two at a time, until she finally reached the top. She was now on the same level as the dragon. She jumped up on the side, drawing another arrow as she did so. Pulling the sting back, she located the dragon, following it's path before she yelled out at the top of her lungs. "FACE ME FOUL CREATURE!" and released the arrow.

The arrow struck true, burying into Mirmulnir's back. He growled in pain as ice grew from the wound and sparks danced across his body, disorienting him for a moment as another struck the base of his tail. Turning toward the source of this new annoyance, he narrowed his eyes. "_Krif krin. Pruzah_!" he roared, adjusting his direction and headed straight for the _joore_.

The young Khajiit briefly heard a desperate shout for her to move by one of her companions before the dragon struck. "_FO KRAH DIIN!"_ Ty'ani dove back onto the tower roof as the ball of ice impacted the area she was just standing. The dragon followed afterwards, beating it's wings before it dove once again. Ty'ani's hair briefly flew as the wind from the wing beat blew in her face.

"Okay, well that didn't work."

Scrambling back to her feet, Ty'ani leant on the stone railing, gazing over the edge. Despite the rain obscuring her vision, she spotted the dragon yet again harassing her companions, forcing them to dodge more of it's attacks. If she didn't get that dragon on the ground, the rest would surely get tired and become slow. That's what it was doing- tiring them out so they would be easier to kill.

It was then that another idea came to her. She frowned. It was crazy, and downright suicidal if it went sideways, but it was the only thing she could think of to cripple it's wings.

Shaking her head and letting out a shaky breath, Ty'ani placed her bow on her back and unsheathed her dagger. Gripping it tightly in her hand, she took a deep breath. She followed its flight pattern carefully, waiting for an opportunity to present itself.

After what felt like an age, the dragon started to fly straight past the tower, and that's when she knew it was time to strike. She ran in the direction the dragon will be, across the tower roof. Once she reached the edge, she jumped up on the railing, using it to propel herself forward as she flew into open space. For a slow moment, Ty'ani floated in the air, the wind whistling through her ears, brushing her hair and whipping through her cloak. With the dagger gripped in a backward hold, she angled her body so she would land belly first, Ty'ani braced herself for impact.

Everything seemed to slow down for her, as she watched the dragon fly underneath her. For a fearful moment, she thought the she would completely miss and fall to her death. She briefly chastised herself for thinking of this stupid plan. The Khajiit girl clenched her teeth, a determined frown crossing her face as she drew nearer the dragon.

She squeezed her eyes shut as at last, she landed heavily on the dragon's back, her breath momentarily leaving her. The dragon let loose a shocked shriek as she grabbed one of it's back spines. As Ty'ani opened her eyes, she realized that this was indeed a very stupid idea when she noticed how fast she was moving, and how high she was. White hot fear ran through her when her eyes took this in. The dragon was jerking from side to side and bucking in an effort to throw her off. Ty'ani held on for dear life, as she did the one thing any sane person in her position would do.

She screamed. Loudly.

Haema and the others watched this bizarre display in bewilderment. The Nord had to admit that Ty'ani was incredibly brave to pull off a stunt like that, but it now seems to her that the little Khajiit had just found herself yet another phobia.

Mirmulnir growled as the infuriating Khajiit refused to let go. It was embarrassing enough that the meddling _joore_ even found a way to get onto him in the first place. That she refused to let go just increased his humiliation. Finally having enough of the damned _Kaaz_, he flew toward the tower.

Ty'ani never noticed what the dragon was intending as she finally mustered up her courage. Still holding onto the spine as if her life depended on it- which it did- she raised her blade and brought it down on the wing joint, piercing straight through the flesh, hitting the bone underneath.

Mirmulnir roared in pain as the Khajiit stabbed his right wing joint, completely throwing off his flight pattern. Instead of grazing the tower, using it to peel the _joore_ off his back as he intended, he crashed sideways into it, disorienting him even further. Debris fell from the crumbling tower when he impacted with it, the large stones tumbling to the ground, the few _joore_ below dived out the way of the falling rocks. On the bright side, it caused the _joore_ on his back to loose her grip. She let out a fearful shriek as she briefly flew in the air before rolling along his wing.

Ty'ani's fear reached it's crescendo. She had no idea how high she was, and she was afraid to find out. Her survival instincts completely took over, as she stabbed her dagger in the general direction of the dragon's wing. The blade ripped through the membrane, but it wasn't strong enough to hold her entire weight. The sharp ebony cut through the membrane as gravity took over. Blood flew out of the giant gash as the dragon let loose a deafening roar. Ty'ani tried to grab something, anything, to prevent herself from falling, but there was nothing. She soon found herself in nothingness as she began to fall.

The others watch this entire display with increasing concern. So when Ty'ani began to fall, they panicked. Jo'Rakha and Zahraji cried out in shock, Haema screamed Ty'ani's name as she tried, in vain, to reach her before she hit the ground. Alasse started, making a snap decision. She had a telekinesis spell that could save the Khajiit's life, but she had only ever used it on objects, never on a person. Thinking to Oblivion with the headache it would no doubt give her, Alasse thrust out both her hands, a green aura surrounding them and her arms. She squeezed her eyes shut, scrunching up her face and clenched her teeth as she concentrated on Ty'ani.

To say Ty'ani was surprised to see a green aura surround her body was an understatement. She didn't bother to question it as she started to slow down before she reached the ground. Whatever it was, it didn't help against the hard landing she suffered, but it did prevent her from being critically injured or killed. She clumsily rolled on the hard ground just as Haema reached her. The Nord threw her battle-axe to the side, dropping to her knees and gripping Ty'ani's shoulder to turn her over. She let loose a sigh of relief when she saw Ty'ani's fearful blue eyes staring up at her.

Alasse released the spell she cast, grunting as pain spread through her head and blood flowed from her nose. Her legs turned to jelly and she collapsed into her knees, gripping her head with both hands as she did so, breathing heavily.

Mirmulnir roared as blood continued to pour from his wing. He flapped his wings desperately, struggling to keep his bulk in the air. Pain spread through his limbs as he kept trying, until he suddenly found his world spinning. His attempts at flying only made him spiral out of control, and thus he began to hurtle toward the ground.

The soldiers watched in fascination as the dragon continued to spiral to the ground, roaring out in fear and pain. After what felt like an eternity, it crashed. It skidded through the dirt, leaving a massive trail in it's wake. Before it could have the chance to stand and shake off the shock, the guards and adventurers charged, yelling war cries as they did so.

Once Haema left her after checking she was alright, Ty'ani rolled back onto her stomach, watching her companions charge the beast. She panted, willing her heart to stop hammering against her ribcage. That was the most frightening experience she had ever endured, even worst then facing Frostbite spiders and Draugr. Taking a final deep breath, Ty'ani focused on the battle before her.

She watched as the guards attacked the dragon's face, Irileth fired lightening from the side with Zahraji firing her crossbow in turn, and Haema and Jo'Rakha attacked from behind. Most of the guards were frozen in place for their effort, a single unfortunate one ended up being snapped into it's jaws before being shook around and thrown. Haema and Jo'Rakha were knocked away by a powerful swipe of it's tail, causing the two of them to fly through the air and land heavily. Alasse was completely down for the count, nursing her head and trying to stop her nosebleed.

Ty'ani scowled. Even downed, the dragon was still a formidable foe.

Narrowing her eyes to slits, she snarled before she jumped to her feet, charging toward the monster with determination in her eyes. Thankfully, her dagger had been kept in her grip despite her frightening experience. She now held it in a backward grip as she drew ever closer to the dragon.

Mirmulnir knocked another _joore_ out of his way when he spotted the _Kaaz_ charging toward him. He snarled. That mortal was really starting to get on his nerves. Ignore all the other _joore_, he turned his head to snap his powerful jaws at the Khajiit.

Ty'ani anticipated this attack, and spun out the way of the large teeth, swiping her dagger at the muzzle of the dragon at the same time. As the dragon roared in pain, she realigned herself, leaping up toward his head, grabbing hold of one of his horns. She swung up onto his head, planting her feet at the base of his skull.

Mirmulnir roared as he shook his head to throw her off, snapping his jaws as he did so. But like before, despite the fact her legs sometimes flew into the air, she just refused to let go. He briefly felt the other _joore_ wounding him, but it was this Khajiit he was more concerned about.

Ty'ani locked her legs to keep herself in place as she was thrown from side to side. She adjusted her grip on his horn, rising her weapon in the air as she did so. She let out a loud war cry as she brought the dagger down. The blade pierced straight into the dragon's eye. The dragon let loose a pain filled roar, it's head bucking up into the air. She twisted the blade to further injure it as it screamed. "_Dovahkiin_! No!"

Seeing the opening, Haema and Jo'Rahka shook themselves out of their pained shock, jumping to their feet. Jo'Rahka charged to the dragon's side, sword poised, as it's wings unfurled away from it's body. Having a clear view of it's side, he plunged the sword through it's ribs, causing extra damage. Haema on the other hand, rushed to the dragon's front, bring her axe behind her for a sideways arch. Swinging it like a baseball bat, she buried the ebony blade into the dragon's throat. A shock gargle sounded out as blood flooded from the newly made wound. Haema wrenched her axe out of the dragon's throat as it slammed heavily down. As it fell, Ty'ani was thrown from it's head with a scream, skidding across the dirt for a short distance. The light from the dragon's eyes darkened as it's entire body went limp.

Irileth, with what remained of her guards, crept toward the giant body. "Let's make sure that overgrown lizard is dead. Damn good shooting boys."

Meanwhile, Haema moved to Ty'ani, while Jo'Rakha and Zahraji went to see to Alasse. Ty'ani groaned as she rubbed her head, gazing up at Haema's smiling face. As the Nord helped her to her feet, Ty'ani grinned. "We make a pretty good team, huh Haema?"

"And you are the bravest, and probably the most stupid woman I have come across. Never before have I seen anyone purposefully charge at an opponent much larger and stronger then them. You are indeed quite the warrior Ty'ani."

Ty'ani blushed at the compliment as Jo'Rakha and Zahraji walked over, supporting Alasse, whom at this point looked like she had seen better days. Zahraji smirked at the smaller Khajiit. "Well, I have to say princess, you are a fierce one." she nodded towards the dragon's corpse, which was being investigated by the guards and Housecarl. "That was one hell of a battle! What do you say we reap on our victory? You get first dibs."

Ty'ani's face lit up at the older Khajiit's compliment as they walked towards the body. She let loose a laugh when she heard the other Khajiit woman comment on how the Bannered Mare should be ready, since the death of a dragon called for a celebration. However her laughter was short lived, since before she could even think about searching the giant corpse, something strange and shocking happened. The dragon began to burn up. The guards, Irileth and her companions jumped in shock at this. "What's happening?" one of the men asked in bewilderment.

"Everybody, get back!" Irileth commanded. They all backed away from the burning body. All but Ty'ani. She was rooted to the spot. For some unknown reason, she couldn't move, she was too fixated by the dragon's corpse melting before her eyes. Anything organic was turned to flame, leaving only the bones, as the fire floated in the air.

The fire then thinned out, transforming into pure strands of white light. It gathered above the bones that was once a dragon, spinning in a drawing of light before they suddenly shot forward, straight for Ty'ani. Not expecting the sudden power she felt, Ty'ani's head snapped back so her gaze was turned to the heavens, her arms spread out as if she was being crucified, muscles locked. Her mouth opened wide, though no sound came out, and her eyes squeezed shut.

From the dark world behind her eyelids, Ty'ani saw something. A ball of flame conjured in the centre of her vision, growing larger and larger and more powerful. Before it covered her whole vision, the ball of flame took shape, a head of a dragon appeared at the top as wings spread from the centre and unfurling. The flame dragon threw it's head upward, letting out a roar of rage before the fire dispersed. Ty'ani never felt such anger and power before in her entire life. She felt as though her body would burst from the intensity of it.

Afterwards, Ty'ani's eyes snapped open, exhaling a shocked gasp as she slumped forward. Breathing heavily, she slowly straightened, staring at her hands in shock. She turned her gaze to the large bones before her and finally the group behind her. All their mouths were hanging open and eyes wide in disbelief, as they stared at her.

Then one of the guards cautiously took a step forward, his eyes looking her up and down before speaking. "I can't believe it! You're... Dragonborn!"

Ty'ani took a step back as she tried to process what was just said to her. "Dragonborn? W-what do you mean?"

The guard who claimed her to be as such answered her question. "In the very oldest tales, back from when there still were dragons in Skyrim, the Dragonborn would slay dragons and steal their power." he stared at her eagerly then. "That's what you did, isn't it? Absorbed that dragon's power?"

Ty'ani shook her head, holding her hands up. "I-I don't know what happened to me."

The guard smiled at her flustered answer. "There's only one way to find out. Try to Shout, that would prove it. According to the legends, only the Dragonborn can Shout without training, the way the dragons do."

Another of the guards looked to his comrade, a frown on his face. "Wait a moment. Dragonborn? What are you talking about?"

Haema gazed at each of the guards in turn, a growing smile on her face. "That's right! My grandfather used to tell stories of the Dragonborn. Those born with the Dragon Blood in them. Like Tiber Septim himself."

The same guard stared at Haema, a disbelieving look on his face. "I never heard of Tiber Septim killing any dragons."

"There weren't any dragons then, idiot." the first guard snapped. "They're just coming back now for the first time in... forever. But the old tales tell of the Dragonborn who could kill dragons and steal their power." he glanced at Ty'ani, a big grin on his face. "You must be one!"

Ty'ani blinked in bewilderment, shaking her head at all the information that had been thrown at her. "WHOA WHOA, STOP! Just stop for a second!" she stepped back, holding her hands up to silence the guards. "Look, I'm not really sure what happened, but this is starting to get a little too much. Okay, some light came out of the dragon and just happened to go into me, that doesn't make me this... Dragonborn!"

Haema stared at the young Khajiit in disbelief, shocked that she would brush this aside. "How can you deny what you saw and felt for yourself Ty'ani? We were _all_ around the dragon's corpse when it happened, and it's power was taken by only you!"

Zahraji nodded in agreement of what the Nord warrior was saying. "Even I have to agree with her. We saw what we saw princess. No denying what our eyes showed us."

The last guard, whom they found hiding in the watchtower, turned toward the quiet Dunmer Housecarl. "What do you say, Irileth? You being awfully quiet."

It was then that all attention was diverted to the woman in question, who just stared at the person who put her on the spot light. The guards looked at her, impatiently waiting for her comment. "Come on, Irileth, tell us, do you believe in this Dragonborn business?"

The Housecarl merely crossed her arms and huffed. "Some of you would be better off keeping quiet then flapping your gums on matters you don't know anything about." she then turned her gaze to the pile of oversized bones behind Ty'ani. "Here's a dead dragon, and that's something I definitely understand. Now we know we can kill them. But I don't need some mythical Dragonborn. Someone who can put down a dragon is more then enough for me."

Alasse, who had been quiet up until now, spoke up. "I am in agreement with Irileth. Tales and legends never won a war, and it won't do so now."

The first guard shook his head. "You two wouldn't understand. You ain't Nords."

Irileth frowned. "I've been all across Tamriel. I've seen plenty of things just as outlandish as this. I'd advise you all to trust in the strength of your sword arm over tales and legends."

The first guard continued to stare at Ty'ani, as an idea came to him. "If you really are Dragonborn, you ought to be able to Shout. Can you? Have you tried?"

Ty'ani blinked at that. "Wha-? No, why would I?"

"Wait." Haema muttered. "Ty'ani, do you remember what happened in the Barrow? With that wall? You said that a word came to your head. What was it?"

Ty'ani did indeed remember. It was hard not to. It was like the word was engraved in her mind and refused to leave. But it couldn't be connected, could it?

She turned to the dragon's bones, as she wasn't sure what would happen when she tried this, so she wouldn't hurt anyone. She stared at the corpse for a moment before closing her eyes. She focused on the word, _Fus_, until it was all she could think of. She then took a deep breath, and released it all in one. "_Fus_!"

Truth be told, Ty'ani had been expecting nothing to happen. Shockingly, a blue shock wave of energy erupted from her, hurtling toward the bones. Just like what that Draugr in Bleak Falls Barrow did when it escaped from it's coffin. The power behind it was enough to shift the pile of bones slightly, clouds of dust flying in the air as the shock wave ran its course. Afterwards, Ty'ani slammed her hands over her mouth, both in awe and sudden fear of what she did. Excited chattering came from the guards when it happened.

"That was Shouting, what you just did! Must be. You really are Dragonborn then..."

Ty'ani took a step away from the corpse unconsciously, her eyes wide. All that had happened in the mere span of five minutes were slowly closing the gap of doubt in her mind, no matter how much she wanted to deny it. She crossed her arms under her petite breasts, her long tail curling around her leg as she turned her gaze to the earth. She briefly saw Irileth walking up beside her from the corner of her eye, as the Housecarl stared at the bones of the dragon.

Irileth placed her hands on her hips as she continued to stare. "That was the hairiest fight I have ever been in, and I've been in more then a few." she then turned her gaze to the small distressed Khajiit beside her. "I don't know about this 'Dragonborn' business, but I'm sure glad your with us. Never before have I seen such courage. You'd better get back to Whiterun right away. Jarl Balgruuf will want to know what happened here."

Ty'ani didn't fully listen to what Irileth said to her, but she nodded none the less. She turned away from the dragon's bones, slipping her black hood over her head and hugging her cloak around herself as she walked toward her companions. Haema placed her hand on the small girl's shoulder, guiding her away from the tower back toward Whiterun. After a quick calculating look thrown at the dragon corpse by Zahraji, the others followed soon after.

**000110110111**

"Why do you deny what happened, Ty'ani?" Haema asked with concern in her voice.

"I'm not denying it, Haema. I simply don't like the fact that I'm suddenly expected to be a hero." Ty'ani replied as they approached the outer wall of Whiterun. She tugged her hood further over her head as the rain continue to pour down in harsh waves, almost completely soaking through the thick material.

"No one said you had to..."

"But they were thinking it."

Alasse, who had been holding a rag to her nose since they left the tower, spoke up, her calculating acid eyes darting between the Nord and Khajiit. "If you ask me, this whole business about her being Dragonborn is slightly far-fetched. There hasn't been a Dragonborn for more then two-hundred years. Not since Emperor Uriel Septim and his heirs."

Haema turned her icy gaze to the High Elf, fully intending to argue her point. But before she had the chance to, something suddenly happened.

A low rumbling sounded through the air as the ground began to shake. The adventurers and the citizens around them stumbled, pausing in their activities at the unexpected event. Suddenly, a thundering crack exploded seemingly from the heavens, echoing throughout the plains. It almost seemed as though Akatosh himself was communicating through the earth, judging by the intensity of it.

From amidst the chaos that the sound caused, a word was heard. One that caused all to turn their gaze to the sky.

_DOVAHKIIN_

Then, as quickly as it came, it ended. A final rumble finished the event before all went silent. For a small moment, no one dared move a muscle. The only sound that was heard was the stream crashing upon the rocks nearby. Farmers and guards looked at each other in astonishment. Before long, disbelieving and excited voices started to echo between them.

Meanwhile, the three Khajiit and Altmer continued to glance at each other and the sky in astonishment. Haema on the other hand, was staring at the large mountain to the south-east in awe. "By Talos." she whispered, her voice filled with wonder. "The Greybeards."

Ty'ani's blue eyes turned to Haema, her pointed ears twitching. The Nord's voice was so soft that Ty'ani had barely caught what she said. Jo'Rakha and Zahraji glanced at each other while Alasse followed Talim's gaze. "The Greybeards?" the High Elf asked, curiosity evident in her voice.

"They are the masters of the Voice." Haema replied, turning her eyes from the mountain, darting between each of them. "I grew up hearing tales of them. They live up on the Throat of the World, studying the Voice."

Jo'Rakha, whom had been unusually quite since the event at the tower, tilted his head curiously at Haema. "The Voice? What is that?"

"The Thu'um." the Nord replied simply. She turned back to the entranceway of the Whiterun wall, silently beckoning the others to follow her as she continued on. "The Jarl can explain it better then I can. I have no doubt that he heard the summon, after all."

**000110110111**

The mood in the palace was sombre as the party made their way to the throne. Proventus was pacing back and forth at the foot of the throne where the Jarl and another large Nord man in scale horn armour conversed. While her comrades waited near the fireplace, Tyani slowly approached the throne.

Pausing his pacing, Proventus smiled as he nodded at her. "Good. You're finally here. The Jarl's been waiting for you." he walked to his usual place next to the throne, while the large Nord stepped to the side. Ty'ani stood before the Jarl as he spoke, staring at the other Nord.

"You heard the summons. What else could it mean?" he turned his gaze to Ty'ani, his eyes filled with a certain knowing look. "The Greybeards..."

Ty'ani fidgeted under the Jarl's intense stare, as the large man next to her addressed her next. "We were just talking about you. My brother needs a word with you."

The Khajiit girl nodded nervously at the burly man before turning her gaze to Balgruuf. With his elbow leaning casually against the arm of his throne, the Jarl spoke. "So what happened at the watchtower? Was the dragon there?"

Ty'ani took a breath before she replied. "The watchtower was destroyed, but we killed the dragon."

Balgruuf's eyes brightened as a smile spread across his face. "I knew I could count on Irileth." he muttered. But Ty'ani could see in his eyes that he knew there was something more. If she was being honest with herself, she didn't want to reveal what had really happened, but she knew it would be inevitable. If she didn't tell him, she was certain that one of her companions would. This was made evident from his next words. "But there must be more to it then that..."

Ty'ani took a deep breath, deciding that it would be best to get it over with. "Well, when the dragon died, I... absorbed some kind of power from it."

At this revelation, both Balgruuf and his brother smiled in excitement. "So it's true." the Jarl whispered. "The Greybeards really were summoning you."

"Who are the Greybeards?" the small girl asked, a questioning frown on her face.

Balgruuf leaned back into his chair as he explained. "Masters of the Way of the Voice. They live in seclusion high on the slopes of the Throat of the World."

Ty'ani already knew that from Haema, since the Nord woman had explained what she could about the mysterious beings. What wasn't explained was why they had supposedly summoned her. "What do these Greybeards want with me?" she asked.

"The Dragonborn is said to be uniquely gifted in the Voice-" he explained. "the ability to focus your vital essence into a Thu'um, or Shout. If you really are Dragonborn, they could teach you how to use your gift."

Ty'ani was having a hard time processing all of the information thrown at her. Her head starting spinning just trying to. It didn't help that the other Nord, Balgruuf's brother, decided to throw more information her way. "Didn't you hear the thundering sound as you returned to Whiterun? That was the voice of the Greybeards, summoning you to High Hrothgar!" he explained excitedly. "This hasn't happened in... centuries, at least. Not since Tiber Septim himself was summoned when he was still Talos of Atmora!"

It was then that Proventus cut in with a shake of his head. "Hrongar, calm yourself. What does any of this Nord nonsense have to do with our friend here?" he gestured casually to Ty'ani as he continued. "Capable as she may be, I don't see any signs of her being this, what, 'Dragonborn'."

From the corner of her eye, she saw Hrongar bristle at the Breton's words. She swore she could feel Haema do the same thing from the fireplace. "Nord nonsense!? Why you puffed-up ignorant... these are our sacred traditions that go back to the founding of the first Empire!"

Poor Ty'ani could practically feel the tension in the room, causing her fur to stand up on end. She was thankful when Balgruuf decided to step in before things got ugly. "Hrongar. Don't be so hard on Avenicci."

Proventus meekly bowed his head as he replied. "I meant no disrespect, of course. It's just that..." he glanced briefly at Ty'ani. "What do these Greybeards want with her?"

"That's the Greybeards' business, not ours." Balgruuf locked eyes with the Khajiit as he continued. "Whatever happened when you killed that dragon, it revealed something in you, and the Greybeards heard it. If they think your Dragonborn, who are we to argue?" he leaned forward as his calculating gaze pierced straight through her. "You'd better get up to High Hrothgar immediately. There's no refusing the summons of the Greybeards. It's a tremendous honour." he paused as he studied the small girl, a small smile forming on his face.

"I envy you, you know. To climb the seven thousand steps again... I made the pilgrimage once, did you know that? High Hrothgar is a very peaceful place. Very... disconnected from the troubles of this world. I wonder that the Greybeards even notice what's going on down here. They haven't seemed to care before." he pondered as his eyes glazed over for a moment, before shaking his head. "No matter. Go to High Hrothgar. Learn what the Greybeards can teach you."

He then rose from his throne, standing before the much shorter Ty'ani, as he placed gentle hands on her small shoulders. "You've done a great service for me and my city, Dragonborn. By my right as Jarl, I name you Thane of Whiterun. It's the greatest honour that's within my power to grant."

Ty'ani's eyes widened in surprise, briefly hearing her companions excited voices behind her. She hadn't recovered from the shock of her being Dragonborn, and now all of a sudden, she was also a Thane. While she didn't know exactly what it meant, she could venture a guess that it means that she is now considered a very important person in Whiterun. If it wasn't for the Jarl standing before her, Ty'ani was certain she might have collapsed due to the shock by now.

Oblivious to the turmoil going on in Ty'ani's head, Balgruuf continued. "I assign you Lydia as a personal Housecarl, and this weapon from my armoury to serve as your badge of office." he handed her a finely crafted steel war-axe that was attached to his hip, before stepping away from her. "I'll also notify my guards of your new title. Wouldn't want them to think you're part of the common rabble now, would we?"

'_In all honesty, that's what I prefer._' Ty'ani said mentally, but respectfully kept her mouth shut. "We are honoured to have you as Thane of our city, Dragonborn." he then returned to his throne, addressing his steward as he sat back down while Ty'ani returned to her comrades, vaguely hearing Balgruuf speak to Proventus as she was surrounded by the four adventurers.

Zahraji clapped her on the shoulder and Jo'Rakha shook her hand as Haema squeezed her arm, since she still held the war-axe, while Alasse just smiled at her. "Congratulations Ty'ani." Haema said as they walked to the exit. Upon being released, Ty'ani buried her left hand under her armpit when they noticed a dark haired Nord woman wearing steel armour marching toward them. A finely crafted sword sat in it's sheath on her hip and a steel shield sat across her back as she bowed her head to the tiny Khajiit.

"The Jarl has appointed me to be your Housecarl." she said in a soft voice, although Ty'ani could see slight apprehension in her eyes as she gazed back. "It's an honour to serve you."

Ty'ani just sighed, closing her crystal eyes as she gripped the weapon with both hands, holding it against her chest. The poor girl just wanted to scream. To curl up into a tight ball and cry. What had gone wrong? Her life had been so simple; hiding amongst the crowd, happily picking pockets and breaking into houses. She was just another Khajiit and no one paid attention to her, which suited her just fine. Now, she was the most recognised person in Whiterun, and there was no doubt in her mind that all of Skyrim will soon find out about this as well.

She released a shuddering breath as her eyes stung with tears. She opened her eyes when she felt a hand on her arm. Looking around, Ty'ani noticed all her companions were giving her concerned looks, including Lydia. Turning to the owner of the hand, Haema's face filled her vision, her icy eyes filled with confusion. Shaking her head, she pushed the threatening tears away and forced a small smile. "Sorry." she whispered. "I'm really sorry. It's just... it's been a long day, and all I want to do is just curl up and go to sleep." '_And hope that this is another bad dream._'

Haema nodded as she addressed all of the assembled group. "I think maybe food and rest is the best option right now." after acknowledging her companions agreement, the group headed to the Bannered Mare.

**000110110111**

_Ta-da! The... not so big reveal... I guess._

I'm not sure if I concluded the fight scene too quickly or if it's not clear about what's happening, I'm not that good at describing intense scenes like that. So if you guys can let me know what you thought of it and what I can improve that would be very helpful.

Yeah I know that Mirmulnir was a normal fire breathing dragon when most people encounters him, but when I encountered him I was quite a high level, hence why I made him a frost dragon. It's just how he came across in the game for me, if that makes sense.

_R&R as always!_


	5. Unbound

**4E 201  
6th of Evening Star**

Lydia was the only one in the break room when Ty'ani stepped down the stairs the following morning. The dark haired woman was sat at the table closest to the kitchen, eating a helping of porridge, fully dressed in her steel armour with her sword at her hip and the shield leaning against her chair with a knapsack just behind it.

Walking to the counter where Hulda was cleaning a bowl, Ty'ani placed down five Septims ordering a bowl of the stuff for herself, with an extra helping of honey. Since Ty'ani had quite the sweet tooth, it was practically a requirement for her to have extra helpings of sugar. Grabbing her bowl, the Khajiit stirred the honey into the porridge as she made her way to Lydia.

"Good morning, my Thane." Lydia greeted as Ty'ani sat at the table, her tail brushing the floor as it twitched from side to side.

A small frown, followed by a half smile was Ty'ani's response as she grabbed the buried spoon. After a mouthful of the now sweet breakfast, Ty'ani replied. "I'm sorry if I'm being rude or something Lydia, but could you not call me that. Just call me Ty'ani please."

Lydia nodded her head. "Very well, if that's what you prefer."

Silence fell between the two women after that. As she was the first one to start, Lydia had already finished her breakfast, patiently waiting for the small girl to do so as well. In the meantime, she carefully studied her. If Lydia was being honest with herself, she was quite apprehensive about Whiterun's new Thane. If what she knew about how Khajiit physically age was correct, then her Thane was young. Perhaps far too young, judging from her mediocre height and child-like appearance.

Feeling the other woman's intense gaze on her, Ty'ani paused in her eating, turning her eyes to the Nord. "Why are you staring at me?" she mumbled, a quizzical look on her face.

Lydia blinked, snapping her stare away, aiming it instead into her own empty bowl. "Sorry. Its just..." she paused for half a second as she returned her gaze back on Ty'ani. "How old are you?"

Ty'ani frowned, perplexed and slightly annoyed. "What kind of question is that?"

"I mean, I don't exactly know how your kind ages. But to me, you just seem rather young." the flushed Nord quickly explained. After a moment of fidgeting under Ty'ani's intense sapphire gaze, the Khajiit girl answered.

"I'm nineteen."

Lydia cocked a brow. "Truly?"

"How old did you think I was?"

"I thought that..." Lydia paused, trying to find the right words that wouldn't insult the girl. "Well, because of your appearance, I..."

"You just assumed that I was younger then what I really am?" Ty'ani snapped. Lydia fell silent after that, unable to find the right words to say. Ty'ani just frowned, shaking her head before returning to her meal. An uncomfortable silence continued to echoed between the two, broken only by the other patrons of the Inn or by the clattering of pots and pans in the kitchen.

Lydia sighed. She had hoped that she wouldn't aggravate her new Thane too soon, if at all. Turns out that it was going to be harder to work with the moody Khajiit then she originally thought. She could only hope that this episode of irritation won't last too long.

Ty'ani paused in her eating, leaning back into her chair and licking the remaining porridge off the spoon before tapping it against the rim of the bowl. She felt utterly annoyed and overwhelmed. Her new position as a Thane, being the Dragonborn. Plus her supposed bodyguard wasn't helping either, with her stupid questions. Flares of hopelessness coursed through her body. Why did this have to happen to her? Out of anyone it could have happened to, why her?

While she respected the Nords and their way of life, she was almost certain that the vast majority would ridicule her for 'tainting' the name of the Dragonborn. Through the months she spent in Skyrim, she had her fair share of hatred and racism thrown at her. All because she was a Khajiit. And now, she's the Dragonborn, the one thing that Nords greatly respected. She almost laughed bitterly at the irony of it all.

From what she understood from the little that had been explained to her, she was now the only person in all of Tamriel who could kill dragons. That put an enormous weight on her shoulders. If she really was the only one who could kill dragons, then that meant it would be up to her to save Skyrim from their tyranny. Her. A nineteen year old Khajiit girl who is the embodiment of her species stereotype.

She closed her eyes, feeling pinpricks of tears threatening to escape from behind her eyelids. Why did her life have to be so complicated? As a child, she was never given any breaks. Driven both from her home in Elswyer, and then again from Cyrodiil. Even upon entering Skyrim she somehow managed to get herself into trouble, and by the end of that she also almost got killed. First from the Imperials, and then from that damned dragon. Then when she believed she would find a fresh start in the Thieves Guild, she was betrayed by Mercer and almost got killed again. She still had the scar he'd given her on her abdomen to prove it.

Is it inherent for her to be attached to misunderstandings and danger like a Spriggan to the forest?

'_I should never have left Cyrodiil. Or better yet, I could've gone somewhere else. Anywhere would be better then right now._'

She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard Lydia's voice. "My Thane?"

Rubbing her eyes and shaking her head, Ty'ani scowled. "I thought I told you to stop calling me that."

Lydia subtly shook her head. "I'm sorry, it's... a force of habit."

Ty'ani sighed before digging back into her almost cold porridge. How long had she been just sitting here? As she scooped up the last of her breakfast, Ty'ani's ears twitched toward Lydia as she quietly asked. "What is your plan then, my Th... I mean Ty'ani?"

Ty'ani pondered the question for a moment as she swallowed down the last of the porridge, swirling her tongue on the roof of her mouth to clean off the sweet taste. "The Greybeards are up on the Throat of the World, right?" at Lydia's nod of affirmative, she continued. "Is there an easy way to get there? I'm not scaling that damn mountain."

"There is a pathway that leads to the summit that begins in Ivarstead." Lydia explained without hesitation.

"That's a seven day journey." Ty'ani muttered before sighing. "Well, I suppose the plan for now is to get to Ivarstead, then head up to High Hrothgar. So, lets head to the General Goods store and stock up on our supplies."

"I hope your not planning on leaving without us." came the familiar scratchy voice of Zahraji. Ty'ani turned to the source, seeing her, Jo'Rakha and Alasse descending the stairs. Ty'ani's eyes widened in shock for half a second, until a quizzical look crossed her face.

"After what happened yesterday? You still want to come with me? I thought you wouldn't want to."

Zahraji gawked at her. "And miss maybe to greatest adventure ever? Hah! You'll have to drag me by the ears to get me away from this."

"Agreed." came the voice of Haema from the entrance, effectively startling Ty'ani. She closed the entrance door behind her, already fully armoured, and walked over to them. She gazed down at the white-furred Khajiit as she continued. "Ty'ani, I seem to remember a certain Khajiit telling me that the sort of adventure she was on would probably lead me to further honour and glory. What greater honour is there then to accompany the Dragonborn on her quest to stop the dragon menace?"

"Yeah, what she said." Zahraji practically yelled, pointing her thumb at the towering Nord woman. She turned her gaze back to Ty'ani, a large grin stretching across her face. "Like it or not princess, but your stuck with us. After all, fighting that dragon was the most fun I've had in a long time."

"But you could've died!"

"And so could you!" Zahraji shot back. "If I seem to remember, you were the one who charged the damn thing, and you survived."

"She does have a point, Ty'ani." Jo'Rakha commented. As Ty'ani looked around at each of them, they all nodded in agreement. She felt quite embarrassed at this revelation, rubbing at the back of her neck. Sighing, she finally relented.

"Okay, we'll gather some supplies and then head to Ivarstead together."

**000110110111  
**

The last two of days had been fairly uneventful and slow going for the small band of adventurers. Before leaving Whiterun, they stocked up on plenty of supplies they would need for the long journey. Things such as food, water, healing supplies and more camping equipment. They also bought a cart, with a overhanging canvas and a horse from the stables, since they couldn't carry all the supplies.

For the moment, Haema was sitting up front, directing the horse along the road with Jo'Rakha sitting beside her. Ty'ani, Alasse, Zahraji and Lydia sat in the back with the supplies. Thanks to both the uneven terrain and random encounters, the journey was starting to be a lot more slower then first anticipated.

On the third day, they travelled the road near the White River, heading out of Whiterun Hold toward Eastmarch. As the cart rolled over a hill, Ty'ani pushed aside the overhanging canvas to get a good look of the view beyond. While she had been down this road more then enough times, she never had the proper opportunity to just look out over the landscape. And it was a grand view. The pristine plains stretched out toward the horizon, completely untouched by man. Made evident from the lack of civilization, cobblestone roads or even dirt ones. Thick pine trees laden with snow dotted the land, reaching high into the heavens with the golden light of the mid-morning sun shining down on it.

Even though Ty'ani's life had been turned upside down and inside out these past few months, she could smile knowing that Skyrim was truly an amazing sight to behold and would continue to be so, no matter the circumstances. While travelling on this cart, the luxury of sightseeing was one of the few perks she could indulge in. Crossing her arms over the lip of the cart, tucking her legs under herself and resting her head on her forearms, the Khajiit girl did just that.

But of course, the moment of peace was broken by the other resident Khajiit woman. Her loud accented voice breaking through Ty'ani's peaceful barrier. "So then, elf. What is it that you do for a living?"

Her question was followed by Alasse's annoyed groan. "I have a name." she growled. "And if you must know, I travel. Mainly to the Nordic burial sites across the land, documenting the history in the walls. I used to do so in the Summerset Isle and Cyrodiil before coming here. I have spent the last fifty years of my life exploring ancient ruins."

That caught Ty'ani's attention, as she whipped around to gaze at the Altmer woman. "Fifty years?" she breathed out in astonishment. "How old are you exactly?"

From under her hood, Alasse turned her gaze to her lap. "I'm only two hundred and thirty-four."

All those present gave her shocked looks. _"Only_ two hundred and thirty-four?!" Zahraji practically yelled. "Damn. I hope I look that good when I'm your age!"

Alasse merely shook her head. "A couple of centuries may seem like a long time to shorter lived species. But among elven kind, I am barely considered an adult. It's why my research had never gained the attention it should."

"And you research ancient history?" Lydia asked. "What makes that any different from other history scholars?"

Gazing at the Nord woman, Alasse calmly replied. "Because I have been searching for clues on the Dragon War. It is a moment in history that fascinates me the most." she then turned her acid gaze to Ty'ani. "That is why I wished to join you in the first place, because you were searching for a relic that dated back to that time."

"The Dragonstone."

The Altmer nodded. "Precisely. According to the little I've found on them, the dragons were the lords of Tamriel at one time. They ruled the skies, and the people who lived below. They inspired cults and rituals, men whom would sacrifice their own to gain their favour. Their power over mortal-kind was immense, often brutal. And then, at a time I'm still not sure of, they vanished, leaving no trace that they even existed. Only the ruins left behind tell the tale of their tyranny. But I believe there was more behind it. Some would say that the dragons were their own masters, but I believe that they were ruled over themselves. A dragon known only as 'the World Eater'."

"How did you come to this conclusion?" Jo'Rakha inquired.

"I told you, I have spent fifty years on this. Tracked down every scrap of evidence, every local legend that I could find. Over time, small patterns begin to emerge from the clues. Though other elven scholars dismiss my claims as fascinations of a young mind."

Haema, whom had been listening the whole time, briefly turned to look Alasse in the eye. "Well, what you told us does seem plausible. Many Nords grow up hearing stories of the Dragon War. Mainly about Alduin. Maybe he and this dragon overlord is connected in some way?"

"Perhaps," Alasse whispered. "I would need more evidence to support it though."

Most of the information that had been explained went straight over Ty'ani's head. Due to the lack of a proper education when she was younger, she never learnt of any of Tamriel's history until she was older. The little she did know was through the ruins she explored back in Cyrodiil, but even that was a minority. Being unable to read was a major disadvantage for her to learn much anyway.

Zahraji didn't seem fully satisfied that her question had been adequately answered however, as was made evident but her next one. "Okay, so beside exploring dusty old ruins, what other reason did you come to Skyrim for?"

After a deep breath, Alasse answered. "I came to Skyrim over six years ago, to study at the College of Winterhold, and I have been Arch-Mage for the past three."

That caused another bout of surprise to run through the assembled group. "Your the Arch-Mage?" Lydia asked perplexed. "How did you become Arch-Mage?"

Alasse folded her hands on her lap. "That is quite the tale."

"One I'm afraid you won't be telling any time soon." Haema exclaimed as she stopped the horse. "Look ahead."

A few yards before them, the adventurers spotted a pair of ancient towers that was located by the shore of the river on both sides. A bridge extended from the centre of the first tower to the base of the second, since it was built into the mountainside to the north. The thing that caught their attention was the silhouettes of people patrolling the bridge and towers. Bandits no doubt.

Since Ty'ani had been down this road before, she knew that these towers were a bandit hideout. But being a master of stealth, Ty'ani had always slipped by unnoticed, since it was a waste of time and practically suicide to take on an entire fort of bandits alone. It seems now, however, there would be no chance of getting by without being spotted.

"What is this place?" Jo'Rakha asked, looking at Haema.

"Valtheim Towers. A notorious bandit hole. Don't be surprised if we have to fight our way through." and with that, Haema coaxed the horse onward.

As they got nearer, it became clear that there were more bandits then they thought. At least over ten. A Redguard woman in thick furs patrolled the entranceway, stopping once she spotted them. Laying a hand on her sword, she marched toward them, holding a hand in the air. "Hold it." Haema pulled back on the horses reins, causing it to stop in front of the first tower. Both she and Jo'Rakha jumped off, followed by the rest of the party clambering off the back. The Redguard continued in a cocky voice. "This here's a toll road, see? Your gonna have to hand over, say..." she briefly glanced between them all, mentally counting how many there were before grinning. "two-hundred gold each if you wanna use our road."

The six of them looked between each other, amused by the bandit's tough talk. Ty'ani stepped forward -Lydia not far behind her- as she crossed her arms, glaring at the bandit in the eye. "And what are you going to do if we don't comply?"

"Then my friends up there come down here and split your bellies open."

Ty'ani wasn't impressed. Glancing back at her companions, she noticed that they weren't either. Gazing at each of them in turn, Ty'ani read the same thing in each of their eyes. Turning back to the bandit, Ty'ani cocked a brow while slowly reaching for her dagger on her thigh. "There are six of us here, while there's only one of you. How do you rate your chances right now?"

Ty'ani gripped her dagger just as the woman turned to yell up to her comrades. Right after she managed to shout up, Ty'ani flicked her dagger at the woman. The ebony blade buried deep into her throat, turning her shout into a gurgle as her body collapsed to the ground. Ty'ani pulled her bow off her back and retrieved her dagger as the others unsheathed their respective weapons, charging into the tower, Ty'ani not far behind.

Haema, Jo'Rakha and Lydia made their way to the bridge, engaging the bandits there in one on one combat. Alasse cast mage armour on herself and summoned a sword as a bandit broke off from the three warriors and charged toward her. Ty'ani and Zahraji on the other hand continued further up the tower to the very top. After disposing of the archer that resided there, trying to take shots at their companions, the two Khajiit stood on the top platform, using their bow and crossbow in turn to take out any bandit that snuck up on the three down below.

The bandit that Haema engaged was an easy one to dispatch, since his iron sword did nothing to protect him from Haema's ebony battle-axe. He swung the sword diagonally at her, which she easily deflected with the handle of her weapon before bashing the heavy end into his face. Disoriented, the bandit stumbled before bending forward. Haema rose the two-handed weapon above her head and brought it down, executioner style, cleaving his head from his shoulders.

Jo'Rakha and Lydia, both being sword and shield experts, stood off against a bandit each, deflecting their blows with their shields before either retaliating or bashing them with their shields. Each fight taking a few moments before Lydia plunged her sword into her opponent and Jo'Rakha used his shield to break the neck of his.

Since Alasse wasn't properly armoured for head on conflict, she used her quick movements and natural abilities to her advantage. Every time the bandit would take a swing at her, she would either step back, or deflect it with her conjured weapon before following it up with a firebolt spell. The few times she was punched, the mage armour she cast did it's job of protecting her from any real damage. Before long, she scrambled back from another swing, summoning a firewall spell in each hand. Extending both hands, she cast the destructive spell on the ground around the bandit. He screamed out in fear and pain as his fur armour caught alight, effectively eating away at his flesh before Alasse resummond her bound sword and plunged it into his chest. She ripped it out as he crumpled in a heap.

Ty'ani fired an arrow from her bow, catching the final bandit in the throat. She smiled triumphantly until she saw the doors to the other tower burst open. Sprinting from the interior was another bandit. However, this one was heavily armoured. Obviously the chief. Drawing another arrow, she lined up her next shot. Releasing the arrow, she barely caught sight of it glancing off his steel-plate armour before something happened.

Half a second after she released the arrow, Ty'ani screamed in pain. She was thrown back as an arrow pierced through her left shoulder, between the strap of her bodice and the Mithril shoulder-guard. She briefly heard Zahraji call out her name as she tumbled down the stairs. Once she reached the bottom, she rolled a little further before suddenly stopping dead, her head smacking against the solid brick wall of the tower, effectively knocking her unconscious.

Zahraji snapped toward the direction the projectile came from, spotting another bandit archer on the opposite side of the river on the mountain. Rising her crossbow, she aimed carefully at the archer before letting it loose. She smiled in satisfaction when she saw her target fly back on the ground. Once it was down, she turned and scrambled down the stairs to tend to Ty'ani.

Meanwhile, the four on the bridge faced off against the bandit chief. The large brute of an Orc wore well made steel-plate armour and carried an orcish great-sword. Which he was extremely adept with. His well placed swings kept Lydia and Jo'Rakha at a distance, while the Orichalcum blade glanced against Haema's ebony axe. Alasse's usefulness had now been reduced, since she couldn't get a clear shot at the Orc without hitting her companions.

Just then, the Orc brought his great-sword up in an overhead cleave, bringing it straight down against Haema. She managed to avoid the blow, however, by jumping back. Realistically, it would have been no easy feat to do in heavy armour, but Haema darted out of the swords path as if she wasn't wearing heavy ebony plated armour at all. The Orc's sword bounced against the stone floor, causing him to stumble. As he tried to regain his balance, Alasse, now seeing a window of opportunity, cast a lightening spell at him.

The Orc jerked as the current flowed through his body, yelling out in pain. While he was stunned, Jo'Rakha and Lydia charged, both with their shields first. Once they made contact, being unprepared, the Orc lost balance and toppled over the edge. Unfortunately for him, he landed in the shallows of the river, so once he hit the ground, his neck snapped. Lydia and Jo'Rakha skidded to a stop before they met the same fate.

Now that the towers were cleared, the four of them replaced their weapons as they heard Zahraji call to them. "Hey, when your quite finished playing around with those idiots, get yourselves up here now! Princess has been hit!"

"What?" Haema yelled back as the four of them raced up the stairway. Spotting Zahraji kneeling on the ground a little further up, they cleared the final set of stairs. Ty'ani lay on her side, a broken off arrow head buried under her flesh. Alasse pushed past Lydia and Haema, both of whom had dropped to their knees beside the unconscious Khajiit. Kneeling down, Alasse reached into her satchel as she studied the wound. The shaft had been broken off, rather unevenly since small splinters of wood stuck out in every direction. The arrow head itself had been lodged neatly under her flesh, so it wouldn't be a simple job of just pulling it out, since that would cause more damage. Once she informed the others of this revelation, she continued. "We'll need to get her out of here so I can tend to the wound properly."

"What?" Zahraji piped up. "So your a mage, a scholar and a healer? Is there anything you can't do?"

"You should be thankful that I know how to heal." the Altmer snapped back. "As I was saying, this isn't a simple job of pulling out the arrow and healing the wound. I'll need to reposition the arrow before I can pull it out."

Nodding, Haema shifted closer to the small girl. Tucking her arms under her back and the back of her knees, Haema carefully lifted her, while Zahraji retrieved the girl's fallen bow. Small droplets of blood trickled from the puncture a she lifted her, Alasse warning her to support her shoulder and not to jostle it. Haema frowned when she straightened. "Wow, she is unbelievably light. Where does all that food she eats go?" turning, she headed slowly back down the stairs back to the cart, the others not far behind.

**000110110111**

Blinding pain was the first thing that hit Ty'ani's senses when she finally regained consciousness. She let out a scream as she felt fingers probing at her shoulder. She jerked about, her eyes squeezing tighter together. Not long afterwards, she felt a second pair of hands gripping her uninjured shoulder and cradling her face. The voice of Haema broke through the barrier of pain. "Ty'ani. Ty'ani, it's okay. Open your eyes, look at me."

Obeying, Ty'ani cracked her crystal eyes open, immediately seeing Haema's worried face in her vision. In the corner of her sight, she spotted the distinctive blue hooded form of Alasse to her left. Tears escaped from her lids as Alasse ran her finger along the outside of her wound. She whimpered, the pain absolutely immense.

Alasse placed a comforting hand on the Khajiit girl's arm, coaxing her to look at her. "Ty'ani, listen." once her attention was firmly planted on the Altmer, Alasse continued. "The arrow head is still in your shoulder. I have been shifting it so it will be easy to remove, but it will be painful. I just need you to hold as still as you can while I pull it out, okay?" at her nod, Alasse placed her right hand on the girl's small shoulder, pinning it down and circling the wound with her thumb and fingers. Gripping what remained of the shaft in her left, Alasse glanced at Haema. "Hold down her other shoulder." when she did so, she looked Ty'ani in the eye. "Ready?"

The poor girl shook her head. "No." she whimpered.

Alasse breathed deeply, bracing herself. "Okay. One, two, three." once she said three, she pulled. The arrow head slid easily out of the puncture, but it didn't make it any less painful for the small Khajiit as she let out a deafening scream. She sobbed as her muscles tensed, her body instinctively writhing around. But thanks to both Alasse and Haema holding her down, she didn't get very far. After her muscles relaxed, she sobbed as the nerve ends in her shoulder flared in white hot pain.

Haema smoothed back Ty'ani's hair, as Alasse got to work repairing the broken flesh. "It's okay Ty'ani. The worst has passed now, just relax." she wiped her tears away as Alasse's hands glowed with the golden aura of healing magic. Swiping her hands an inch over Ty'ani's shoulder, the Khajiit girl sighed as she felt the wound knit together. The Altmer continued this until the wound completely disappeared, leaving no trace that there was anything there at all.

Ty'ani sat up, rubbing her sore shoulder as the last remainders of pain left her. It was only then that Ty'ani realized that the only things she was wearing was her leggings, boots and breast strap. She shivered as the cold started to get to her now she wasn't distracted. Haema handed her her black cloak once she noticed her shivering. Wrapping it around herself, Ty'ani looked around.

They were in the cart, but were still in front of Valtheim Towers. The sun was at it's highest point in the sky, indicating that it was now mid-day. So she wasn't unconscious for very long then. Shifting into a kneeling position, Ty'ani spotted her shirt and bodice laying on one of the seats. As she moved to retrieve them, Haema and Alasse backed up to give her room. Alasse jumped off the cart and moved around the front of it -presumably to stand with the others- while Haema sat a little ways from Ty'ani as she replaced her armour.

"How are you feeling?" Haema asked after a moment of silence.

"Okay, considering I got shot." Ty'ani replied. Haema smiled at her attempt at humour.

"You really gave us quite the scare."

Ty'ani grinned as she laced her bodice up. "I'll remember to dodge next time." finishing with her bodice, Ty'ani circled her cloak around her neck as she took a whiff of the air. "Someone cooking?"

"Yes," Haema replied. "Zahraji shot down a deer while you were out and Lydia's making us some venison stew. Should be almost ready now." they jumped off the cart and moved around it, easily spotting the rest gathered in a loose semi-circle near the tower entrance.

Jo'Rakha held up a bowl of water to the horse, the large animal gulping down the refreshing liquid as he stroked it under the chin. Alasse was laying out some bowls while Lydia poured stew into them. Zahraji on the other hand was already munching on a piece of raw meat.

Ty'ani had seen the Khajiit woman do that multiple times before. The first few times had been quite alarming. It was highly unusual for anyone to eat meat raw unless they were desperate. Yet Zahraji did it on a whim. When asked about it, she merely glares, saying that she prefers it that way and doesn't elaborate. Ty'ani swore that woman was getting stranger by the second. Something was really off about her, but for the life of her Ty'ani just couldn't figure it out.

Handing out the now filled bowls, Lydia smiled when she caught sight of Ty'ani, handing her one of her own. "How are you feeling, my Thane?"

Ty'ani sighed as she accepted the bowl. "How many times Lydia, it's Ty'ani."

"Sorry," the Nord quickly apologised before repeating the question with her name.

Rubbing her shoulder with her free hand, Ty'ani sat on the nearby log. "A little sore, but I'm okay."

Zahraji lowered her chunk of meat, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand as she stared at Ty'ani. "You really need to get some muscles on you, princess. You practically flew when you were hit."

Ty'ani shrugged at Zahraji's comment before digging in to her meal. Moaning in satisfaction as the warm stew slide down her throat, a welcome feeling against the cold air. The meal was continued in silence after that, the only entertainment the adventurers had was listening to the sounds of nature with nothing to distract them. Though it seemed even the forest was still and silent, the only noise from distant birds chirping and flapping their wings. Going crazy from the silence, Zahraji broke it once again.

"So, Nord. Haema right?" her attention now on the Khajiit, the woman in question nodded. "Haema, what's your story?"

"My story?" Haema asked before sucking in a breath. "Not much to my story really."

"Oh come on," Zahraji prompted. "Your a member of a warriors guild, don't tell me you've not got some interesting tales to tell?"

Haema thought for a moment as she lowered her empty bowl. "Well, there was this one time where I had to fight through a cave full of Falmer to rescue someone they kidnapped."

"Oh, do tell."

Sighing, the Nord continued. "It wasn't fun at the time, lets put it that way. The cave was infested with the buggers. Not to mention those insects -the Chaurus- they always have those things with them. I hate those damn things."

"We can relate." Jo'Rakha sympathized. "We fought through a fair few caves full of them ourselves."

"I earned a few scars in that place." Haema continued, removing her right gauntlet. Once it was off, she turned her arm so the underside was facing up. On her arm was two scars that looked like teeth marks travelling down each side, with a burn scar in the middle. The burn itself splashed out from the centre, merging with the teeth marks. It was quite impressive, if not a bit grotesque. "Got that from a Chaurus. Bit me straight through my steel armour before spitting it's poison. The most painful experience I had ever endured. I was sure it would have bit my arm off if it wasn't for Farkas lopping it's head off."

"Who's Farkas?" Ty'ani inquired.

"Farkas is my husband. Him and me had been as inseparable as him and his brother since we first joined the Companions." replacing her gauntlet, she continued. "Well anyway, we disposed of the Falmer and got the woman back home."

"Wow." Zahraji commented, thoroughly impressed with Haema's scar. "Got any other scars?"

Haema nodded, pointing to the ones on her face. "Earned these scars from a Sabre Cat. Nasty piece of work. Caught me completely unawares while I was out in the plains. Slashed me a few times across the face before I brought it down. That was back when I was still a fresh faced young woman, still naïve about the world. Teaches me everyday that there are dangers around every corner." she then pointed to her right side, drawing a line across her waist. "There's one here I got from a Dwarven Sphere. I didn't manage to get out of the way in time, and it got me in the hip."

"Those automations are fast." Alasse commented.

"Learnt that the hard way." Haema replied.

"Sounds like you did have an interesting life Haema." Ty'ani commented.

"Being a part of the Companions would give one interesting battles." Lydia commented. "I had been thinking about joining for a while myself."

Haema looked at Lydia in approval. "Why didn't you. You would have been welcomed."

Lydia shrugged. "I was promoted to Housecarl before I got the chance. But protecting the Dragonborn is by far the greatest honour I've ever had."

Smiling at her bodyguard, Ty'ani turned her gaze away from the group. Seeing the sun beginning its descent to the horizon, she set aside her bowl and rose. "We should probably get a move on. Try to gain more distance before nightfall." her companions made noises of acknowledgement, beginning to pack away the camp. Once all the equipment was on the cart, they piled on and set out.

**000110110111**

They travelled a good distance before the sun sank below the horizon. Now the stars and moons were high in the sky, the adventurers found themselves nearing a cross-road. One road heading east to Windhelm, and the other heading south to Ivarstead. Deciding it would be the best place to stop and set up camp, Haema parked the cart at the road side and they all jumped out. Pulling out their tents, the six began to erect the camp. Once the tents were up, Lydia got to work building a fireplace while Jo'Rakha and Zahraji disappeared to hunt for their evening meal.

As soon as Ty'ani placed her knapsack and weapons in her tent and was dressed in her oversized shirt, she crawled out with her cloak still wrapped around herself, shivering. Her trim body did nothing to ward off the freezing wind. It was cold this evening, since the sky was clear of cloud-cover and they were quite close to the northern parts of Eastmarch. Windhelm was known to be one of the snowiest cities in the province -next to Winterhold. Once Lydia got the fire going, Ty'ani sat close to it, wrapping her arms loosely around her knees and curling her tail tight around her waist, absorbing the warmth of the embers.

As they waited for Jo'Rakha and Zahraji to return, they gathered around the fire. Alasse had pulled a book from her satchel, now effectively captured amongst the pages. Lydia had begun to place the cooking equipment out for Jo'Rakha, since it was his turn to cook this evening. Haema exited her own tent, now adorned in a loose shirt and breeches, since her armour would only get in the way now they were resting. Moving around the fire, she sat beside Ty'ani, offering her a water-skin. Accepting, Ty'ani uncorked it and squeezed out the droplets of water into her parched mouth. She shivered as the cool water slithered down her throat before handing it back to Haema.

Once the two Khajiit Dawnguard warriors returned with three rabbits, Jo'Rakha immediately got to work in preparing food for them.

While waiting, Ty'ani shifted around until she sat horizontally from the fireplace. Falling back, she lay on her back, staring up at the stars. She stayed that way for a while, faintly picking up the scent of the food, as her eyes roamed the sky. Her eyes widened all of a sudden, pointing upward. "Hey look," she called out to the others, catching their attention. "My birth sign is out tonight."

Following her gaze, they all spotted the particular constellation of stars the Khajiit girl was talking about, standing out proudly among the tiny spots of lights that covered the aurora coloured sky.

"The Shadow?" Haema asked, returning her gaze back to Ty'ani. "You were born under the Shadow?" Ty'ani nodded, turning briefly to look at her companions before returning to the stars.

"Well, it makes sense." Jo'Rakha commented. "From what I've witnessed from your fighting technique, you are a stealthy one. It's very fitting."

Shifting onto her side, Ty'ani rested on her elbow as she gazed at each person. "What about you Jo'Rakha? What were you born under?"

Jo'Rakha placed down the cooked rabbits, beginning to cut them evenly as he replied. "I was born under the Warrior."

"As am I." Lydia said, staring at the Khajiit male in surprise. "That is quite a surprise. But after what I have seen of you, it's fitting. Truly the essence of past warriors belong now with those stars."

"Indeed." he replied as he began passing out the evening meal.

Turning to Haema next, Ty'ani continued her questioning. "What about you Haema?"

The Nord smiled as she accepted her plate. "The Steed."

Ty'ani blinked, now fully understanding why Haema can move unrestricted in her armour and carry heavy objects. "I was wondering why you could lift the Dragonstone without straining." Haema laughed as she began to tuck in to her food. Turning her attention to the older female Khajiit, Ty'ani questioned. "Zahraji?"

"Oh my turn is it?" Zahraji asked with humour, reclining back against the rock she was leaning against. "I was born under the Lover."

Haema huffed out a small laugh. "That doesn't surprise me in the slightest."

Ty'ani turned finally to Alasse. But despite the fact she seemed to be too absorbed in her book, the Altmer answered before the Khajiit girl could ask. "Atronach."

Jo'Rakha cocked a brow as he studied the High Elf. "You can absorb spells?"

"Yes," Alasse replied as she rose her gaze from the book. "But not all the time."

"Wow." Zahraji commented.

Silence fell amongst the group soon afterwards, as they tucked in to their meal. As Ty'ani swallowed a small chunk of meat, she smiled. It was good that they were talking and getting to know one another. After all, if they were going to be staying with each other for however long this thing took, then talking and becoming more then acquaintances is the best idea. It would have become awkward otherwise, which is the last thing Ty'ani wanted.

As she finished her meal, Ty'ani placed her plate down near the fire, yawning as she did so. She covered her mouth with the back of her hand, her eyes instinctively closing. Rising from her spot, she addressed the group. "I'm going to turn in, if any of you mind."

They nodded, Haema lowered her own plate as she gazed up at her. "Have a good night Ty'ani." turning from them with a smile, the Khajii girl crawled into her tent, closing the flaps for privacy. Folding the bed-roll's blanket back, she wriggled into the fur roll, tucking it and her cloak around herself. Now she was away from the fire, the evening air had wormed its way through her body once more, hence her cloak staying around her.

She briefly listened to her companions discussing who will be on watch during the evening, as she curled into a ball. Dragging her dagger closer to her, in-case they were attacked. Ty'ani closed her eyes, almost immediately falling asleep.

**000110110111**

_I know it said seven days to Ivarstead, but I didn't want to bore you guys with the entire journey, so only big intense fights like this will be mentioned on the roads._

_And by the way, I made Skyrm a lot bigger then it is in the game because it's more realistic that way. They did that in Lord of the Rings y'know. In the films, the journeys were cut down because they wanted to stay in with the running time, while in the book Tolkein describes how long it really took to get through the Shire to Bree and to Rivendale etc. I'm doing something like that._

_By the way, you Elder Scrolls fans see what I've been doing with the chapter names yet ;). Anyway, we'll probably arrive at Ivarstead sometime in the next chapter._

_R&R as always please ;)_


	6. The Way of the Voice

**4E 201  
14th of Evening Star**

The bright light of the moons shone upon the colourful land of the Rift, the wind beginning to pick up as the six adventurers rode across the bridge that led to Ivarstead. It had been a long week for them, with quite a few restless nights and random encounters. So the tips of the village's houses was a welcoming sight.

Haema stopped the cart just outside the Vilemyr Inn. She jumped off, turning to her companions. "Wait here while I'll see if we can keep the cart here."

As she walked inside the tavern, the rest of them either jumped off the cart to stand around, or slump into their seats even further. Ty'ani rested her arms on the side of the cart, leaning her head against them. A deep sigh escaped her lips, tiredness gripping her consciousness. The week had been hell for her, since yet again, she had nightmares every night. It was starting to become less of a frightening experience and more of an annoyance. Though the images did still terrify her, she just wished that they would stop. It had been months since the black dragon had shown itself and it hadn't appeared again. She just wanted the images to stop plaguing her mind.

She tried to pass her nightmares off as nothing to her companions, but she knew eventually they would get too worried about her and demand to know what was going on. Waking up screaming every night doesn't quite invoke confidence in this matter. Ty'ani only wished it wouldn't come to pass too soon, she wasn't very eager to relive her nightmares in a waking state.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a couple of nearby guards talking. Ears perked up, her attention drawn to the the topic.

"The Dragonborn has been summoned to High Hrothgar. Such a thing hasn't happened in hundreds of years."

"What could it mean?" the other guard asked her comrade. "Could it really be the return of the Dragonborn? And who amongst us could hold that honour, and such power?"

Zahraji laughed as she plopped down next to Ty'ani, apparently having heard the conversation as well. "If only they knew huh?"

Ty'ani sighed. "Please don't go around telling everyone. I want to put off the backlash for as long as possible."

Zahraji leant back, crossing her arms as she frowned at the younger Khajiit. "What's eating at you?"

"Nothing." Ty'ani muttered, flattening her ears against her head. This told Zahraji that the girl didn't want to speak any more. Waving her hands and sighing in irritation, the Khajiit woman left her alone.

Ty'ani felt a little bad about sending the woman away like that, but it was for the best. After all, due to the mood she was in, she would more then likely snap at her. And frankly, Ty'ani didn't want to deal with the drama that would no doubt follow. She sighed once again, erasing the thought from her mind, just as Haema emerged from the tavern.

Walking up to her companions, Haema addressed them. "I've paid for our rooms, and they've agreed to care for our horse and provisions while we go up the mountain tomorrow."

"Well that's one problem out of the way." Alasse commented as they piled off the cart, allowing Haema to guide the horse to the back of the Inn. Once out of the way, they grabbed their knapsacks and other important things from it before entering the Inn for much needed sleep.

**000110110111**

The rays of the sun shone brightly through the cracks in the cloud cover, illuminating the morning mist resting on the pathway leading up the mountain, as the six adventurers began the daunting climb. Having loaded themselves down with their tents, rations and enough fire wood to last the ascent and descent.

As the rooftops of Ivarstead began to disappear below the mist, Ty'ani sighed as the first traces of snow began to make it's appearance. Hugging her cloak around her tiny figure, she huddled closer to Haema. The Nord woman's tall frame seemed to block the incoming wind chill, as Ty'ani seemed to feel much warmer.

Presently, the group had been walking up the mountain path for almost the entirety of the morning. They had past a pilgrim praying at one of the so called 'Etched Tablets' a while ago, so it was decided that they should stop and rest. Huddling around the recently built fire, they begun to have a quick meal and a rest before setting out again.

Upon finishing her small meal, Ty'ani sighed. Resting her arms on her knees, ideally listening to Zahraji trying to coax Alasse into a conversation, Jo'Rakha and Lydia swapping sword and shield techniques and Haema sharpening her axe with a whetstone, Ty'ani began to study to landscape around them.

Her back was to the steep drop that faced toward Whiterun, so that she wouldn't have to look at the immense height -thanks to her newly found fear of heights- she instead watched the trees. As the wind picked up and rustled through the evergreens, she watched the snow fall from the branches in boredom. As she followed the pathway of the wind back to the direction they came from, Ty'ani's sharp eyesight suddenly spotted something unusual.

While the abnormality was tucked behind the trees, she still clearly saw a dark shape contrasted perfectly against the white background. She would have passed it off as a rock or something that had escaped the snowfall, only for the shape to suddenly shift behind one of the tree trunks.

Startled, Ty'ani blinked and just like that, the landscape returned to as it was, with no trace of anyone being there. The Khajiit girl searched the area, but nothing reappeared, ruling out the possibility of it being an animal.

Letting out a gasp, she addressed her companions while keeping her eyes fixed on the place she saw the figure. "There's someone down there!" she hissed in panic, effectively gaining the attention of the group.

As her companions glanced both at her and the direction she gestured, Ty'ani rose to her knees, trying to get a better angle of the area. She cursed the wind direction as it blew toward the apparent intruder. Whoever this person was, they were both skilful and had a good sense of knowledge about their group. It was practically impossible to determine if it really was a person or not, as she couldn't pick up any scents.

After studying the area indicated, Haema turned to address the Khajiit girl. "Are you certain Ty'ani? Did you get a clear look at them."

Ty'ani shook her head. "I couldn't see who it was, but there is definitely someone down there. I'm sure of it."

Alasse narrowed her eyes as her companions discussed this new problem. Deciding to solve the mystery, she held up her right hand. As she had spent almost two centuries studying magic, she knew a wide variety of spells from every school. One such spell that had saved her life on more then one occasion was the Detect Life spell. It enabled her to 'see' the life-force of any living creature within range. With her hand now surrounded with the red aura, she cast the spell.

Her vision became enhanced, now seeing the world in an almost blinding haze. She picked up multiple aura's in the area, as well as her companions, but they were all far too small to be humanoid. After double checking the pathway and allowing the spell to wear off, she frowned. Bringing her attention to Ty'ani, she crossed her arms. "Are you certain that you saw someone?" she asked in a tone that implied disbelief. The Khajiit nodded.

"Yes, I'm sure. Don't you believe me?"

Shaking her head, she elaborated. "Well, I have just cast a Detect Life spell. If there was anyone there I would have seen their life-force. All there is are animals and us."

The group frowned at her. "Are you sure?" Haema asked.

"Positive."

The Nord sighed at her answer, before turning to the distressing Khajiit. "Alright. Ty'ani, it could be possible that all you saw was an animal." at the girl's downtrodden look, Haema placed a hand on her shoulder and continued in a reassuring tone. "But that doesn't mean we should relax. We'll take your warning into account Ty'ani." on that note, she stood back up, grabbing her pack as she did so. "In any case, we should be moving on."

Upon the group's acknowledgement, they began to retrieve their respective packs and loose equipment. Once the fire was doused by a simple ice spell from Alasse, they continued the trek up the mountain. Lingering behind, Ty'ani gazed back to the spot where she saw the figure. She was certain that someone was there. Unfortunately, she can't argue with spells that were used for detecting life. Thus, with a wary sigh, she turned back to the path, running to catch up with her companions.

Unbeknownst to her, however, from behind a fairly large tree trunk, a dark figure peeked back around it's hiding place. Glowing golden eyes narrowing, before disappearing once more.

**000110110111**

It had taken an entire day to make it up the mountain. The Throat of the World really did live up to it's reputation of being the largest mountain in Skyrim, and perhaps all of Tamriel. On the following morning, they finally reached the infamous summit of High Hrothgar.

Rounding the last bend, they were met with the towering stone structure, the stones themselves were so dark, they were almost black if it weren't for the snow that infiltrated the gaps. Despite that, they showed little sign of being withered or aged. No doubt the structure was enchanted or greatly reinforced in some aspect. There seemed to be a feeling of reverence to the building as well, similar to what one would feel in a temple.

Two large sets of stone stairs curved around the building, leading to a pair of double doors on either side. In the centre of the stairs was what seemed to be an offering chest of some kind. Most likely, pilgrims and the local villagers make this journey to leave the Greybeards gifts and food.

"Well, there it is." Haema commented, her voice full of awe. "High Hrothgar. I never thought I'd see it in the flesh... so to speak."

Upon seeing the imposing structure, Ty'ani felt a small feeling of foreboding. The building alone intimidated her, so she could hardly imagine what the Greybeards would be like. Haema and all the other Nords of Skyrim make them sound almost like the ancient shamans of her people. Powerful beings with infinite wisdom. But what if they weren't at all like that? What if all the stories told of them were just childish fascinations, told to children to make them seem benevolent?

She suck in a deep breath through her nose before letting it all out in one. "Alright," she said, her voice full of the confidence she didn't feel. "Let's get this over with." filled with renewed purpose, she marched toward the structure, heading to the left most set of stairs, her companions close behind. Upon reaching the giant iron doors, she paused, before taking another deep breath. Without further hesitation, she pressed her hands on the cold surface and pushed. She grunted from the effort to open the heavy doors, but with further assistance from Haema, she managed. The chilled wind blew mournfully into the open maw of the doorway as they each stepped inside the monastery. Once they were all inside, they pushed the door closed again, shutting out the biting cold.

Inside was pleasantly warm, compared to the weather beyond the walls. The chamber they found themselves in was simple, but cavernous. Several hallways lead to and from the room, with a large platform flanked by small stairways, leading to doors similar to ones they just entered from. The walls were lined with braziers, burning flames engulfing the wood inside the bowls, providing the pleasant warmth they felt.

As they walked further into the room, seemingly from the shadows, four men in grey robes stepped into the room. Each of them were elderly, wrinkles adorning their faces with -as was appropriate for their name- grey beards on their chins. They lined up at the far side of the chamber, in front of the platform, each one of them tucking their hands into their oversized sleeves, almost like they were in prayer.

One of the men stepped away from the group and into the centre of the room. He stared at each of them with an experienced eye. It was obvious who he was looking for. Ty'ani stepped away from her companions, leaving them to stand on the opposite wall of the Greybeards. Stopping before the elder man, Ty'ani stared him in the eye, wringing her hands together as he studied her with a scrutinizing look.

Finally, after what felt like an age to the poor Khajiit girl, the man spoke, his voice as withered as his features. "So, a Dragonborn appears, at this moment in the turning of the age."

Ty'ani hesitated for a moment, forcing her hands to still so she could remove her hood from her head. "I-" she stuttered as she lowered her arms to her sides, curling her hands into fists to stop them from fiddling with her cloak. "I was hoping you could help me." she said at last, her voice small, but still echoing through the cavernous room.

The old man just nodded. "First," he replied. "let us see if you truly are Dragonborn. Let us taste of your voice."

Ty'ani blinked at that. "You mean... Shout at you?"

"Yes." he said, raising a reassuring hand. "Worry not, you will not harm us."

Ty'ani hesitated for a moment, feeling quite apprehensive of Shouting at the old man. From the one time that she did it, it was powerful enough to shift heavy dragon bones, so what chance did these men have? Letting out a sigh, she took a deep breath and Shouted.

"_Fus_!"

The familiar blue shock wave escaped from Ty'ani's mouth and hurtled toward the man. He stumbled a few paces back when it hit him, and for a fearful moment, Ty'ani thought she had hurt him despite his reassurances. However, he quickly regained his balance, completely unharmed as he promised, his eyes now much brighter then they were.

A small smile graced his face as he stepped back to his original place in front of her. "Dragonborn," he breathed in wonder. "It is you. Welcome to High Hrothgar." he bowed to the young Khajiit, Ty'ani seeing the other three doing the same from behind him, as he once more tucked his hands into his sleeves. "I am Master Arngeir. I speak for the Greybeards. Now tell me, Dragonborn, why have you come here?"

Ty'ani stared at Arngeir for a moment, thinking over what she would say to him. "I don't understand." she whispered at last. "Who exactly are you? What is this place?"

Arngeir seemed amused by her questions as he answered. "We are the Greybeards, followers of the Way of the Voice. You stand in High Hrothgar, on the slopes of Kynareth's sacred mountain." he explained. "Here we commune with the voice of the sky, and strive to achieve balance between our inner and outer selves."

The way these men lived seemed simple enough to Ty'ani. Living on a mountain studying ancient magic. Her thoughts were interrupted by Arngeir once more. "Now, Dragonborn, what is it you need of us? What do you seek?"

Ty'ani glanced at the three behind Arngeir, contemplating an appropriate answer, before turning her gaze back to the aged man in front of her. "Per chance," she began. "Is there a way for me to... _not_ be Dragonborn?"

A look of surprise crossed all of the Greybeards faces. She also heard shocked gasps coming from her companions behind her. She was certain that if she was to turn to face them, they would be no trace of any of them trying to hiding their shock. So she kept her gaze upon the old man before her.

Silence echoed through the room as Arngeir contemplated her question. She briefly noticed the other Greybeards staring at her in awe as he replied. "If I may ask, Dragonborn. Why do you wish to remove this blessing?"

"A blessing to the Nords perhaps." she replied. "But as you can see, I am not a Nord. As far as I see, the Dragonborn has been a hero to the Nords for centuries. Forgetting the obvious ridicule I will receive, I just do not want to be the Dragonborn. I am a nobody. I am no hero and I have no wish to be! I just want to be normal again. Can you get rid of this power so I can return to normal?"

Arngeir shook his head. "We can not." he simply replied.

"Why?"

A flicker of sadness crossed the older man's face then. "Because it is simply a case of not knowing how."

Ty'ani deflated physically at Arngeir's words, her shoulders slumping in defeat. Her head lowered, her chin almost touching her chest as she resisted the urge to cry. That's it then, her hope for being normal again has diminished. The loose locks of hair that escaped her ponytail fell into her eyes as she whimpered out another question. "Why me then? A Khajiit with little battlefield experience and part of a race despised by those who admire the Dragonborn?"

"I can not pretend to know how the Divines work. Their way is truly perplexing at best." Arngeir replied in a comforting tone. "No one will know how or why they act, nor will they, I am sure. But they chose you for a reason. They saw something within you to grant you the gift of the Dragon Blood. And we are here to guide you in that pursuit, just as the Greybeards have sought to guide those that came before you."

Ty'ani perked up at that. "You mean I'm not the only Dragonborn?"

Arngeir nodded. "You are not the first. There have been many of the Dragon Blood since Akatosh first bestowed that gift upon mortal kind. Whether you are the only Dragonborn of this age... that is not ours to know. You are the only one that has been revealed thus far. That is all I can say."

Ty'ani sighed once again, her hands beginning to fiddle with her cloak despite her attempts not to. "Well," she began. "If I truly am going to be stuck like this, then I'm ready to learn what I need to know."

The Greybeard smiled contentedly, as did the others behind him. Ty'ani swore she also heard her companions let out sighs of relief as well. Gesturing with his arm for her to step forward, Arngeir moved to the side to allow Ty'ani to step into the centre of the room.

"We will do our best to teach you how to use your gift in fulfilment of your destiny."

Ty'ani frowned at the word 'destiny'. While she didn't believe in it, she decided to humour them by asking anyway. "And what is my destiny?"

"That is for you to decided. We can show you the Way, but not the destination." Arngeir replied, and immediately Ty'ani felt relieved. If there was anything she hated most, it was people trying to tell her that her life has already been written and that she must follow the path laid out before her, despite her feelings. Arngeir continued. "You have shown that you are Dragonborn. You have the inborn gift. But do you have the discipline and temperament to follow the path laid out before you? That remains to be seen."

Arngeir paced around her until he stood in front of the other Greybeards. "Without training, you have already taken the first steps towards projecting your Voice into a Thu'um, a Shout. Now let us see if you are willing and able to learn." he studied her face for a moment, as if to read if she wanted to ask any further questions. Seeing that she didn't, he continued. "When you Shout, you speak in the language of dragons. Thus, your Dragon Blood gives you an inborn ability to learn Words of Power. All Shouts are made up of three Words of Power. As you master each Word, your Shout will become progressively stronger."

He looked behind himself, gesturing to one of the other Greybeards on his right. "Master Einarth will now teach you _Ro_, the second Word in 'Unrelenting Force'." he continued on as the Greybeard known as Einarth stepped forward, standing beside Arngeir. "_Ro_ means 'Balance' in the dragon tongue. Combine it with _Fus_, -Force- to focus your Thu'um more sharply."

Arngeir then stepped back, allowing Einarth to stand before the young Khajiit. He faced the floor, back bowed and uttered very quietly the Word of Power: _Ro_. A small blue shock wave -similar to the one Ty'ani Shouted, but much more controlled- flew from the Greybeards' mouth and struck the floor. The stone was then suddenly compressed into a series of strange markings, similar to the ones Ty'ani encountered in Bleak Falls Barrow. Ty'ani took a small step back, surprised at the sudden appearance of the etching. But despite her hesitance, the etching still began to glow brightly. Against her will, she felt the icy tendrils of the ancient power grasp her, like what had happened in the Barrow. The word engraved itself into her mind, falling in harmony with _Fus_.

The feeling subsided, and Ty'ani let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Looking up, she spotted Arngeir's pleased expression. "You learn a new Word like a master... you truly do have the gift." he stepped forward once again to stand at Ty'ani's side, the Khajiit girl following him with her eyes. "But learning a Word of Power is only the first step... you must unlock its meaning through constant practice in order to use it in a Shout."

Ty'ani stared at him with an incredulous look. She would have to stay here to study the Word if that was the case. There was no telling how long that would take. Seeing her worried look, Arngeir quickly corrected himself. "Well, that is how the rest of us learn Shouts. As Dragonborn, you can absorb a slain dragon's life-force and knowledge directly."

"But," Ty'ani said. "There isn't any dragons here."

"Quite right," he replied, "and as such, as part of your initiation, master Einarth will allow you to tap into his understanding of _Ro_."

Ty'ani turned to the mentioned Greybeard. When she did so, the elder closed his eyes, laying his left hand atop the other in concentration. Suddenly, the man began to emit a strange glow, and before long, small tendrils of light flowed toward Ty'ani. She closed her eyes when her head begun to fill with the knowledge of the Word of Power. The experience wasn't as powerful as the absorption of a dragon soul, but it was still intense. The light ceased to flow, the room becoming dark once more.

"Now let us see how quickly you can master your new Thu'um." Arngeir stated as they all made a circle around the centre. Getting the impression that she should move, Ty'ani stepped in front of the platform. "Use your 'Unrelenting Force' Shout to strike the targets as they appear." Turning to face the centre, she briefly noticed her companions had moved to the side before another of the Greybeards took a single step forward.

"_Fiik... Lo Sah_!" he Shouted. A purple distortion appeared in the centre, and when it dissipated, a ghostly entity stood in it's place. Taking a deep breath, Ty'ani Shouted in quick succession.

"_Fus... Ro_!"

Once the last Word left her mouth, the familiar blue shock wave left her, though it was slightly bigger then before. It struck the ghost with such force that the apparition was destroyed in a violent puff of blue smoke. Dust that had collected on the stone ground flew into the air for a while, before slowly descending back down.

She was asked to perform the task two more times, before Arngeir stopped her with a smile. "Impressive. Your Thu'um is precise. You show great promise Dragonborn."

Ty'ani couldn't help but smile. She could hardly believe how easy this was. It seemed to be as natural as breathing to her. She turned her attention back to Arngeir as he addressed her once more. "We will perform your next trial in the courtyard. Follow master Borri." he indicated to the person in question, whom immediately began heading for the doors upon the platform.

Looking back at her companions for a brief moment as the four Greybeards headed to the exit, she gave them a small smile before following, with the other adventurers close behind. She braced herself for the cold she would no doubt feel, wrapping her cloak around herself as she stepped outside.

It was absolutely freezing when she stepped outside. It appeared that the wind had picked up while they were inside, bringing a light snow-fall with it. The white substance crunched under her boots as she stepped fully onto the courtyard grounds. She shivered violently, wrapping her cloak as far as it could go around her trim body.

She stood beside Borri as Arngeir spoke now they were all outside. "Now we will see how quickly you can master a completely new Shout." he indicated to Borri. "Master Borri will now teach you _Wuld_, which means 'Whirlwind'."

As Einarth did inside, Borri lowered his head, whispering the Word to the ground. Once the etching appeared on the snowy floor, the snow around it flew away from the disturbance before settling. Without hesitating this time, Ty'ani stood above the etching, allowing the icy tendrils to grip her mind. Once the Word was in her mind and she received the knowledge from Borri, the four Greybeards all headed to the far side of the courtyard, where two stone pillars sat with a wrought iron gate some distance from that.

Each of the four Greybeards took positions by or between these two structures as Arngeir addressed her when she approached. "Now we will see how quickly you can master a new Word." he gestured to the Greybeard that stood beside him. "Master Wulfgar will demonstrate 'Whirlwind Sprint'. Then it will be your turn." he turned toward the iron gates, looking over to Borri, who stood beside them. "Master Borri."

The aforementioned Greybeard raised his hand, and Shouted. "_Bex_!"

Upon uttering the Word, the gates swung open on their own accord. Before they opened fully, Wulfgar begun the Shout. "_Wuld... Nah KEST_!"

All of a sudden, Wulfgar became a speeding grey blur, travelling far faster then was physically possible for any mortal. Ty'ani blinked in surprise, missing the gates closing. Upon closer inspection, she saw the faint outline of Wulgar behind the iron gates. "Wow." she whispered, her crystal eyes wide in amazement.

Arngeir smiled at her amazed expression. "Now it's your turn." he said, gesturing the spot Wulfgar was just occupying. "Stand next to me. Master Borri will open the gate. Use your 'Whirlwind Sprint' to pass through before it closes."

Ty'ani took a shaky breath. She could plainly see behind the gate that the edge of the summit was just there. She shivered in fear. The last thing she wanted was for this to go wrong and fling herself off the edge. Before she had the chance to second guess herself, she stepped up beside Arngeir and Borri opened the gate. Squeezing her eyes shut and summoning up her courage, she threw caution to the wind and just Shouted.

"_Wuld_!"

It almost seemed as though the entire world split in two while she sped past at blinding speed. Like a portal just opened before her and she was just stepping through it into a new location. She didn't even have time to finish uttering the Shout before she was already through the gate. Once she slowed, she stumbled a few steps, scrambling to regain her balance. That was absolutely incredible. Turning back to where she came, she just caught the gates reopening, revealing the astonished looks of all the assembled.

After a moment, she realized that yes, she was still standing on a very cold mountain as the chilled wind seeped in her adrenaline fuelled body. She shivered, wrapping her cloak back around her body as she walked back to Arngeir. Whom didn't even try to hide the look of amazement he had.

"Your quick mastery of a new Thu'um is... astonishing." he commented once she was in front of him. "I'd heard the stories of the abilities of Dragonborn, but to see it for myself..."

Ty'ani frowned, tilting her head to the side, one of her ears flattening against her head in a questioning manner. "I thought it was easy for everyone."

Arngeir let out a short laugh at that. "No. Indeed not. But beware that your skill does not outstrip your wisdom." he said in a warning tone. "You are now ready for your last trial. Retrieve the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller, our founder, from his tomb in the ancient fane of Ustengrav. Remain true to the Way of the Voice, and you will return."

"Who was Jurgen Windcaller?" she asked.

"He was a great war leader of the ancient Nords, a master of the Voice, or Tongue." Arngeir replied as the other Greybeards broke off from the group, and her companions rejoined her from the sidelines. "After the disaster at Red Mountain, where the Nord army was annihilated, he spent many years pondering the meaning of that terrible defeat. He finally came to realize that the Gods had punished the Nords for their arrogant and blasphemous misuse of the Voice."

Ty'ani nodded. "So, where will I find Ustengrav?"

"I can answer that." Haema replied before Arngeir could. "It's just north of Morthal."

"Okay." the Khajiit girl replied. "Then we better get going. Thank you for everything Master Arngeir."

Arngeir bowed his head to Ty'ani as they began to depart. "Sky above, voice within."

**000110110111**

"Well, that was interesting." Zahraji commented as they walked back down the mountain hours later.

"Indeed." Alasse agreed. "I have learnt a great deal more during our time here."

The snow had begun to pick up since leaving the monastery and the sky had darkened with heavy clouds. It was now a constant flow of snow falling from the sky, which caused the wind to pick up with an even colder bite. Trying her hardest to keep warm, Ty'ani hugged her lithe figure and pulled her hood further down her head as she replied to her comrades banter.

"If I must be honest, they weren't quite what I was expecting."

"Why?" Lydia asked. "What were you expecting?"

Ty'ani shrugged as best she could. "I'm not sure. Maybe them being more shamanistic? I don't know."

"Why shamanistic?"

Before Ty'ani had the chance to reply, however, she suddenly picked up a very suspicious noise. It sounded like a very large pair of feet shuffling through the snow. And it was coming from right above them. Before she could have the chance to yell out a warning, an enormous furry white mass thumped down smack bang in the middle of the group. Each one of the adventurers jumped out of their skin, instinct taking over as they all dived away in different locations.

Landing on her side, Ty'ani scrambled back up to face the unexpected opponent. Standing hunched over where the group had just been, was a very large Frost Troll. The seven foot creature straightened up and snarled, before letting loose a bone rattling roar. How in Oblivion did she miss it? Trolls were not the stealthiest of creatures, but yet it still managed to catch them off guard. She could pass it off as it being so well camouflaged against the white background and the fact they never saw it on the way up, but still...

It was glaring directly at her.

Breathing in a shocked bout of air as it charged her, Ty'ani leapt to her feet and scrambled away. Thankfully, she managed to get away, thanks to Haema. The Nord woman had recovered and was now distracting it, having just buried her axe into it's back. The troll roared in pain, mindlessly swinging one of it's powerful arms toward the new threat. Haema barely managed to duck down as the heavily muscled limb flew over her head, wrenching out her axe at the same time. As she straightened, she bashed the tail end of her axe into the troll's face to disorient it.

All that did was make it angry. It swung at her again, forcing her to jump away from the deadly talons that graced it's fingers. But one enemy replaced another, as Jo'Rahka and Lydia stepped up as one, bravely facing the monstrous troll. Both had their shields raised and their swords poised, just as a firebolt and a crossbow bolt slammed into the troll's shoulders. It roared as the flames licked at it's body. With renewed anger, it continued to swing it's muscled arms dangerously.

Due to the frantic movements and the unexpected attack, Jo'Rahka had no time to jump away. The powerful arm connected with his side. A muffled crack was heard as he went flying, only to stop short when he slammed into another body. The pained feminine yelp indicated that he was thrown at Zahraji, the both of them tumbling down the slope they had just climbed.

Now that Jo'Rahka could no longer watch her flank, Lydia tried to contemplate for the loss. She slashed her sword across the troll's abdomen. It was a precise strike, however, due to the troll's thick fur, muscles, fat and natural regeneration, it wasn't deep enough to be damaging.

The troll snarled at the Nord, and swatted at her head, talons poised. Lydia raised her shield arm to block the blow, but the steel only protects against so much. The force behind the swing caused her shield to snap, sending her flying while bending her forearm at an awkward angle. White hot pain ran up her arm as the bone fractured, falling onto her back screaming. Before it could finish her, another firebolt hit home on it's chest and Haema returned to the battle, bringing her axe down on it's shoulder from behind, executioner style.

Once the axe buried into it's shoulder and it's fur was set alight, it growled, jerking it's massive bulk around to face the Nord behind it. The sudden movement stunned Haema, causing her to loose her grip on her axe as she stumbled. A mistake that cost her. The troll wasted no time in swinging at her. She instinctively raised her arm to protect herself against the blow, but it didn't do any good. Once it's arm connected to hers, Haema screamed in pain as her arm snapped, denting the armour and bending the limb at an unnatural angle.

Once Haema fell, it's attention was yet again diverted to the two still standing. Alasse continued to cast firebolts at it, while Ty'ani had just wrenched her bow off her back and was now taking aim. Deciding to take care of the smaller prey first, it charged toward Ty'ani.

Ty'ani panicked when the troll began to move toward her. The distance between them was so small that Ty'ani barely managed to let loose her arrow. In her panic, the projectile flew wide from her intended target, which had been the head. She rolled to the side, just avoiding it's first swing. However, the second swing caught her. The troll's sharp talons grazed her left shoulder, leaving two deep scratches below the Mithril shoulder-guard. She cried out, her momentum interrupted as she flopped ungracefully to the ground, the Nightingale bow flying from her grip. Deep red blood flowed in river-lets from the wound, staining her white fur ruby.

With her bow out of reach, and her only defence her small ebony dagger, Tyani knew she was doomed. The tiny blade would do nothing against the enormous troll, especially with it regenerating so fast. Gripping her shoulder in a futile attempt to stem the bleeding, Ty'ani tried to back away from the lumbering monster. Unfortunately, due to the slippery ground her boots couldn't grip properly, and it was still heading toward her to finish her off, despite Alasse peppering it with fire attacks. Squeezing her eyes shut, Ty'ani waited for the finishing blow.

It never came.

Instead, she heard a loud war cry. Opening her eyes, she saw that a dark figure had jumped onto the troll's back, repeatedly stabbing an ebony short sword into it's flesh. The troll cried out in surprise, before pivoting around, trying to shake the newest threat off. But the figure held fast, it's left arm wrapped securely around the troll's throat, choking the life out of it as well as making it bleed heavily.

A final stab in it's chest, right in the heart, was what sealed the troll's fate. With a final gurgle, it slumped forward, landing face first on the snow-covered ground. The figure leapt off it's back before it made impact, rolling expertly to soften the fall.

Now that the threat was taken care of, the adrenaline that coursed through her body starting to retreat, Ty'ani groaned as the pain in her shoulder increased ten-fold. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and grit her teeth, trying her hardest to stop the bleeding. She barely felt the presence of two figures kneeling beside her before a pair of hands gently grasped her right wrist and her left arm. A deep voice ordered that Alasse go tend to the others while he looked to her, Ty'ani finally opened her eyes to see their rescuer.

Only for her sapphire orbs to grow wider in surprise.

The man kneeling beside her was a very familiar face. He was a darkly coloured Argonian with deep red feathers and two long horns adorning his head. A glowing golden eye and a milky white one regarded hers as he inspected her wound. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw his face. "Okan-Ru?!" she exclaimed in a shocked tone.

He smiled cockily at her as he reached into his pack and brought out a healing potion. "Good to see you again... Ty'ani?" he replied, his voice taking on a questioning tone when he said her name. She nodded in confirmation before shaking her head.

"What are you doing here?"

The Argonian merely shook his own head as he propped Ty'ani on his raised knee, forcing her to drink the potion he was offering. "I could very much ask you the same thing." he countered, throwing the empty bottle away as Ty'ani swallowed the substance, her face scrunching up at the foul taste. She sighed in relief as her shoulder knit back together.

Rolling away from Okan-Ru's embrace, she stood, glancing around to see the extent of the damage. Alasse was currently treating Haema's broken arm, her hands glowing with the warm aura of healing magic as she reset the bone. Lydia was standing, but was holding her own broken arm tenderly. Zahraji was pulling her father back to the group, Jo'Rahka himself wincing in pain at every step, holding his broken ribs with one hand as he leant heavily against his daughter. The Khajiit woman looked bruised, but was otherwise unharmed.

Letting loose a sigh, Ty'ani retrieved her bow and placed it back across her arrows. Looking back to Okan-Ru, she smiled as he rose to his feet. "Well, thank you. You got here just in time."

"Not fast enough it seems." he replied as he turned his gaze over to the others. The two of them watched Alasse finish up with Haema, leaving the Nord to replace her damaged gauntlet, and turned to treat Lydia.

Ty'ani sighed, beginning to walk toward her injured companions. "Well, it's a good thing that Alasse is such a talented healer."

Once she had carefully lowered her father to the ground and helping to prop him against a rock, Zahraji stood back up. Turning to see the newest arrival, she suddenly froze. The wind was blowing in her direction, and thus Okan-Ru's scent was caught by her extremely sensitive nose. Her face immediately changed, her amber eyes narrowing dangerously, ears folding back and baring her teeth in a vicious snarl. Grabbing her war axe, she charged at the Argonian with an animalistic growl.

Okan-Ru turned just in time to see Zahraji's attack, and he immediately sprung into action. Scrambling away from the dangerously sharp axe, he unsheathed his own sword and readied himself for another strike.

Ty'ani and the others started in surprise at Zahraji's sudden viciousness. The Khajiit girl ran in-between the two warriors, holding her hands up in an effort to calm the raging woman. "Woah, Zahraji, stop!"

Zahraji just snarled at the intruding Khajiit. "Get out of my way!"

"What in Oblivion is wrong with you?" Ty'ani snapped. "Okan-Ru just saved our lives! He's on our side!"

Zahraji just let out a humourless laugh. "That's what he wants you to think!"

"Zahraji," Haema yelled, gaining the Khajiit woman's attention. "What _are_ you talking about?"

Zahraji shook her head, pointing her axe at the Argonian. "Are you all blind, or just stupid." she snapped. "Take a good long look at him and tell me what you see."

Not really seeing what this would entail, Ty'ani decided the best thing to do was to not antagonise the angry woman. So she turned to study Okan-Ru, who in turn gazed at her. She looked him up and down twice, but she couldn't see what Zahraji was indicating to. It might be due to him wearing Dark Brotherhood armour, but that was all she could see.

She turned back to Zahraji. "Is this because he is an assassin?" she asked timidly.

"Partly," Zahraji replied, scowling. "But not the real reason." she took a single step forward, raising her axe higher in an intimidating display, her eyes glowing with spite and her voice full of venom as she continued.

"It's because he's a _vampire_."

**000110110111**

_And the plot begins to thicken :O... :P_

_R & R please peeps, as always._


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